Just A Bit Longer
by Keitoz
Summary: What are the results if the hero Kurosaki Ichigo were to arrive just seconds late or early to a climatic event? Just mere seconds can alter the future of three men. Five years after the Winter War, four of the Espada decide to visit. Sexual Content. UlquiHime, GinRan, NnoiNel.
1. Exposed

**Hello everyone! It's been a while since I've written fanfiction but I felt so moved by the forbidden relationship of Ulquiorra and Orihime that I just_ had_ to spill these emotions somewhere! As a consequence, I am doing this purely on impulse and passion so I will warn you ahead of time that I may not update often. Hopefully there are enough fanfics and art to spur my motivation haha.**

**I find there's a lack of UlquiHime fics that actually have a storyline and lemons without going OOC so there WILL be lemons some time later in this story. Also note that I will be using proper Japanese honorifics. They are really important when classifying relationships and I'll go into depth with them later on for those of you who don't really know what it means. And ****_onna_**** is pronounced ****_ohn-na_****.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Bleach is Tite Kubo's creation.  
**

* * *

"…that's what it means when we say our hearts are one" Orihime continued. She looked into Ulquiorra's eyes in unstable determination, trying her best to cover the fear in her soul with her words.

"What is a heart?" Is all he asked, unfazed. Ulquiorra raised his right arm, his fingers loosely pointing mere inches from her breasts.

"Could I see it if I tore open your chest?" He raised his arm higher, his fingers now at her eye level causing the hair on Orihime's neck to stand up. She feared she wouldn't be able to keep up her courageous façade up much longer.

"Could I see it if I cracked open your skull?" With this sentence, Ulquiorra forcibly slashed away Orihime's dress apart with just his hand. Bits of fabric flew in all directions as her breasts were fully exposed to the air of Las Noches. Orihime's front collapsed and she let out a loud whimper as she covered her breasts with her arms. She stood there feeling vulnerable, her eyes now shut in fear with tears threatening to spill from the edges and her arms were wrapped tightly around her chest. She lowered her head in defeat.

Ulquiorra stood there watching her reaction looking uninterested.

"I see that there is no heart. I see nothing but fear. Fear of your death."

Orihime clenched her teeth tightly, her hands gripping her sides harder. She snapped her head up and glared at him, tears glistening in her gray eyes.

"I'm not scared," She murmured. "I'm not scared!" She didn't know why she felt this way. Obviously, she was shivering in anxiety and her pose was not confident, but if there was one thing she felt strongly about, it was that she was not scared. At the moment at least.

Ulquiorra eyes widened at her sudden exclamation, surprised his tactic had failed to break her. He almost felt impressed.

"Why aren't you afraid, Onna? You will die alone here. There is no one for you to hold onto."

"There is, Ulquiorra." Again, Ulquiorra was caught by surprise.

"I know you won't hurt me. Aizen may have disposed of me, but you also have no reason to kill me," Orihime continued, her voice now louder with confidence, "There's something _you_ fear of, Ulquiorra. What is it?"

Ulquiorra furrowed his brow at her, his impression of her quickly shattered. "How absurd."

Orihime unwrapped her right arm, exposing her right breast, and placed it gently on the base of his throat. She could feel the edge of his hollow hole underneath his uniform at the tips of her fingers. "What have you to lose when you have already lost your heart? You shouldn't be afraid to gain another." She took a step forward, only one more step away from Ulquiorra. "When you care about someone, a heart is born."

Ulquiorra looked down at the hand touching his hollow hole then shifted his gaze at her now uncovered breast. Her vulnerable, pink nipple was hard from the stale air of the tower and her breast round and supple, the remnants of her dress unable to contain its mass. He stepped back uncomfortably, but found himself unable to look away. His frown hardened when he started to feel an uncomfortable warmth pulsating near his abdomen.

Orihime parted her lips to speak again, but the two were interrupted by the overwhelming reiatsu of Kurosaki Ichigo's anger.

* * *

Orihime's eyes followed Ichigo and the Espada frantically as they fought within the tower. The caramel-haired girl held her hands together in concern, her body rigid, and her head turning at all angles to track the duel. She was anxious for her friend knowing he was at a disadvantage and Ulquiorra had not even released his Ressureccion form, but in her distraction, Orihime failed to sense the two pairs of arms that were preparing to bind her.

"Gotcha." Loly murmured into her ear as her hand clasped down on Orihime's mouth to keep her shut. Orihime wanted to scream, but fear glued her vocal cords together when she looked straight into Loly's menacing eyes.

"Inoue!" Ichigo yelled having noticed her predicament and lept to her aid.

"Step back!" Loly screamed, her hand now emcompassing Orihime's eye and the other hand aggressively gripping her shoulder, "I'll rip her eye out if you come any closer!"

Ichigo paid no attention to her warning and lunged forward. _Fool_, Ulquiorra thought, _nothing will keep that hateful bitch from her revenge_. Without thought, Ulquiorra intercepted Ichigo's charge.

"Ulquiorra!" Loly responded in shock.

"Don't misunderstand. I didn't do it to save you two."

_Why did I do it then?_ Ulquiorra mused. He shifted his gaze back to Ichigo. _Is it merely for my pride or…_ He looked back at Orihime. He watched Orihime while keeping Ichigo back with mild consciousness. Loly had gone back to harassing her by ripping apart her already torn dress much to Ulquiorra's irritation. Orihime's legs were now exposed , her breasts barely covered by her frail arms, and her back bare. Her hair flowed around her face and covered her revealed back as she was tossed around like a puppet by Loly. Orihime fell on the ground and Loly used this moment as a chance to brutally kick her unprotected back repeatedly.

_How meaningless_, he thought.

"Move it!" Ichigo yelled as he tried to force his way through.

"Make me," Ulquiorra retorted. "Are you humans so stupid to ignore a Hollow's threat when they are blinded by hatred?" He swung his sword twice causing Ichigo to back up. He then used sonido to get behind Loly and caught Loly by surprise as he grabbed her raised wrist before she landed a fatal hit on Orihime. Ichigo stood planted in his spot in disbelief.

"Aizen-sama may have no reason for her existence and Inoue Orihime has no rights to her own life, but you are trash whose presence should not even be here before me. I do not intend to witness your barbaric, shameless acts," Ulquiorra then flung Loly by the arm with enough force to break through the wall and out of the tower.

"Loly!" Menoly ran screaming to where she could have landed outside, disappearing from the scene.

Orihime regarded her savior warily and slowly repeated the event that just happened in her mind in her disoriented state. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized her savior was Ulquiorra the Cuatro Espada, and Ichigo stood in the background. Ulquiorra did not turn his head to look at her, but instead shifted his eyes to peer at the woman. The two gazed into each other eyes, trying to find the answers to his actions. Ulquiorra searched in her grey, pearl eyes to know why he cared to witness a barbaric act that did not concern him and Orihime was lost in his teal, green orbs just as perplexed on the same reason. Ulquiorra turned to look at Ichigo and sheathed his zanpakutou.

"I recall my orders were to protect Las Noches," he paused, "Though I have previously stated that you are something I must eradicate, I realize this will be fulfilled whether it is I or someone else to do the deed. It is your fate, Kurosaki Ichigo, to die. I have already claimed you are no threat to Aizen-sama."

Ulquiorra looked back at Orihime, his gaze softening, but his face still void of emotion. He examined her faint pink lips as they quivered, questions filling to the brim of her mouth and threatening to spill over, then slid his gaze down to her smooth, pale neck framed by her red-brown locks and exposed collar bone. Feeling the ache in his abdomen, Ulquiorra felt he had to do something to distract himself. He reached a hand out to her to help her up.

"Are you afraid, onna?"

She took his hand without hesitation and stood up, her eyes never leaving his.

"I'm not...afraid," and indeed she wasn't. With her hand in his, she felt her strength coming back to her through his hand. His evergreen eyes bore straight into her soul making her feel more naked than she already was.

As soon as she was able to gain her bearings, Ulquiorra dropped her hand, stepped on his heel, and turned away.

"You may take her, Shinigami," Ulquiorra started to walk away without looking back, "She does not belong here."

Orihime watched Ulquiorra's figure fade into the dark background, a thousand questions buzzing in her head. She looked back to Ichigo who was still gawking at the Espada who had left the stage. Shaking her head to help her focus, Orihime started to pick up the largest fragments of her clothing off the floor to help her cover herself and walked over to join Ichigo.

* * *

Ulquiorra kept walking through the empty halls of Las Noches. To where; he did not know. He stopped walking and placed his hand near his hollow hole where Orihime's hand was not long ago. He had been feeling a painful tingling sensation near his hole ever since.

"Right as I was finally growing interested in you people…" He continued to walk forward.

_I want to… observe Inoue Orihime more._

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed the first chapter to stay with me longer! I hope I wont be a waste of your time~  
**

**Honorifics: The Japanese Language uses a broad array of honorific suffixes for addressing or referring to people, for example -kun, as in Kurosaki-kun and -sama for Aizen-sama. Bleach has some exceptions to names that are not Japanese like Grimmjow and Ulquiorra.**_  
_

**Most common suffixes in order of familiarity to pure respect to disrespect:  
**

**-no suffix (first name)** = very close. Used for best/childhood friends, lovers, etc. (Ichigo likes to address people by their first name. That's why Hitsugaya Toushiro and Kuchiki Byakuya get annoyed)

**-kun,-chan** = close friends (Shinji calls Orihime "Orihime-chan")

**-san** = general suffix. Acquaintances and friends and used to address the elderly respectfully. (Uryuu calls Orihime "Inoue-san")

**-sama** = pure respect. (Rukia calling Byakuya "nii-sama" which means brother but with a ton of respect)

**-no suffix (last name)** = Meant to call out someone who is on your bad side. (Uryuu thinks he's a badass and calls Ichigo "Kurosaki")**  
**

**If I got something wrong, don't be shy to tell me! I made this purely from what I know from watch tons of anime hehe.**


	2. Gold and Silver

**This chapter will be relatively short, but essential. Enjoy!_  
_**

**Inspired by bu-nong's drawing. I shall post it in my profile!  
**

* * *

_"If you were to turn into a snake tomorrow and begin devouring humans, and from the same mouth you started devouring humans, you cried out to me 'I love you,' would I still be able to say 'I love you' the same way I do today?"_

Ichimaru Gin opened his eyes, azure orbs barely able to focus on the man that was about to kill him. He had just received an almost fatal wound by Aizen's sword, but instead of seeing a monster, he saw a man he had decided to ally with a hundred years ago for a single purpose. This day was inevitable.

_I've decided. I'm going to become a shinigami._

Memories of Matsumoto Rangiku came leaking through his mind during what he thought would be his last moment. He thought of the way she smiled even though she was hurting. The nights he would wake up beside her and see a tear shimmer in the dark on her tinted cheek. How beautiful she had grown up to be.

But he wouldn't give up there. He reached his arm out towards the Hougyoku embedded in Aizen's chest, but right before he was even close to reach it, Aizen had stepped far back away. Gin had no strength to stand so he fell in a heap on his back, blood pooling around his body and soaking the ground.

With all his strength, Gin lifted his head to look at the scene in front of him. Images were starting to mix and blur, but he could make out a black figure with orange hair._Ichigo._

"How could you kill your own nakama, Aizen?!" He could hear Ichigo shout. Gin would have chuckled at Ichigo's obliviousness, but he ended up coughing, his lungs filling with blood instead of air.

The scene in front of him started to unfold and become clearer. The first thing Gin noticed was the way Ichigo was standing, posed confidently with his sword in front of him, a new power now in his hands.

Gin leaned his head back on the ground knowing it would be okay now that Ichigo was here. He closed his eyes in peaceful defeat.

_…n…_

Voices and the sound of clashing metal started fading into the background. Suddenly, darkness rid of all the light that flooded the vision underneath his eyelids. He felt comfort in thinking of Rangiku's golden hair and that little mole on her chin.

_…in…_

_This is it, _Gin thought,_ I'm sorry I couldn't bring back what you lost… Rangiku._

_"…Gin!"_

_I'm so glad… I was able to apologize._

Rangiku hovered over Gin's broken body. She reached a hand to his face, caressing his cheek delicately. Tears were now spilling from her eyes and landing on his cheeks. They slid from his pale cheeks and merged with the dark blood that flooded around him and stained his clothing.

_Don't cry, Rangiku, he wanted to tell her, but he was quickly fading._

Rangiku knew there was hope. There had to be. She idled no longer and separated the soiled robe from his body, exposing his ragged undergarment that scarcely covered the deep wound that was engraved from his navel to his throat. She saw his chest barely rise and fall for air.

Rangiku unwrapped the pink scarf that draped across her shoulders and pressed the cloth firmly into his wound. She knew this tactic would be hopeless and that blood would just seep into his lungs, but this had to do for now. With all her strength, she carried the grown man bridal-style and shunpo'd away from the battle that was taking place in the background.

_Don't give up on me yet, Gin. Not when I finally get to see you again. Not now. Please._

As she ran she looked down at the face of the boy she had once trusted, his face was scrunched up in pain and his lips slightly parted. She wondered what it would be like to touch those lips. She wanted to _know. And I will, _she swore_, I will make sure he never leaves me without telling me again._ She landed on the roof of a nearby building in Karakura Town and gently placed Gin back down.

_I don't know crap about healing, but hopefully what I learned in school could help me now. _The strawberry-blonde woman repositioned the soaked scarf onto his wound and proceeded to heal him. She prayed to some unknown God that she could at least save his major organs just as Izuru Kira had done for her not long ago.

_You cry for me, Rangiku. Even though I hurt you so much. Even though I pushed you away. You always come to my side…_

* * *

**A/N: Please leave a review on your way out! Thank you! It would definitely encourage and motivate me to update faster~**_  
_


	3. Falling Into Place

**Just going to warn you guys ahead of time: Yes, this will be one of those cliché post-Winter War fanfics, but I'll try to keep this as interesting as possible! There will be a mix of drama/action/romance (of course). Who doesn't like a sexually frustrated Ulquiorra? –wiggles eyebrows-**

* * *

Five years had passed since the Winter War. Orihime and her nakama are now at age 21, the peak of their youth. Inoue Orihime decided to become a Physician's Assistant, Ishida Uryuu a Cardiologist, Yasutora Sado a Veterinarian, and finally Kurosaki Ichigo a Physical Educator as a side job to his full-time work as a Shinigami Substitute. Currently, Orihime, Sado, and Uryuu attend the same graduate school while Ichigo had already graduated with a four-year degree and is currently teaching at Karin and Yuzu's high school.

Orihime would occasionally think back to Ulquiorra, the Espada who at the same time had ruined her and saved her. She realized she couldn't just force herself to forget him. He brought out the best in her. Back then, he claimed that Ichigo would surely die and not hinder Aizen Sousuke's plans, but Ulquiorra was wrong. Without a leader to control the remaining Espada, what is left for them to do? Just hang out in the ruins of Las Noches? Orihime felt a pang of guilt for causing her nakama to destroy their home. Realizing how she felt at the moment, she shook her head vigorously to rid herself of the guilt. _My friends came to save me!_ She reflected, _Aizen shouldn't have used me!_

Satisfied with her resolution, she huffed aloud.

"Inoue-san?"

Orihime tilted her head back to see Uryuu behind her carrying his book bag.

"Ah! Ishida-kun! What's up?" Orihime waved her hands around frantically like as if she was trying to dispel the awkward air that surrounded the two.

"I just saw you making some strange movements while you were walking. Is something on your mind?" Uryuu was well aware that Orihime would unconsciously act out her thoughts physically. His glasses were slipping off his nose again so he pushed them back up with a finger.

"Oh, it's nothing," she giggled nervously. She didn't want to tell him what happened in the Fifth Tower of Las Noches and it seems Ichigo felt the same way because no one had mentioned it, "I just feel really nervous about this exam!"

"Ah, you mean our Microbiology exam?" Uryuu frowned having been reminded that he would be taking the test soon with her.

Orihime nodded at him, shifted the books in her arms into a better position, and continued forward to the exam room with Uryuu in tow. Uryuu realized Orihime had gone back into daydreaming or whatever so he decided to walk beside her silently.

Orihime could imagine the way Ulquiorra's long coat tails swished behind him as he turned to walk away from her back at Las Noches like it was just yesterday. His dull, green eyes seemed so much more vivid in her imagination and his hand, when she took it, felt warm and rough. She remembered so many small details of her moments with him. She didn't know why. Maybe it was due to the impact his words and actions made on her. Like every move he made mattered and was not wasted.

The caramel-headed girl brought her palm up and examined it, Uryuu watching her in curiosity, but she said nothing. She felt like she could fabricate the very feeling she felt at the edges of her fingertips while she touched the cloth that covered Ulquiorra's Hollow hole. _I wonder what he's doing now…_

"Inoue-san," Orihime turned to look at Uryuu and saw a concerned expression etched on his face. She looked back down at her empty palm and stopped walking. Uryuu halted with her wondering if he was going to get an explanation this time.

"Ishida-kun…," she didn't look up from her hand, "You know Ulquiorra…"

"Yeah?" This piqued his interest. The Fourth Espada had not been mentioned since he had battled Yammy. He always wondered where he went or if he were defeated by Ichigo.

"Mmm…," she furrowed her brow, scrutinizing some invisible spot on her palm, "Ulquiorra kinda saved me, you know?" She knew this sounded strange so she decided to twist the subject, "Do you ever wonder what the remaining Espada are up to? Maybe they will revolt again!"

Ulquiorra saved her? From whom? Although, he does remember Orihime being barely clad in her ruined dress. Fortunately, Uryuu had brought his sewing kit with him to Hueco Mundo and fixed her right then whilst trying not to gawk at her exposed body. He always thought that Ulquiorra was the cause of her nudity and harbored a dark hatred towards him.

"I doubt that, Orihime. At least not for a very long time. Right now, Soul Society overpowers the Hollows and is keeping a close watch on them." Uryuu stepped forward leading Orihime this time, they resumed their silent walk and paused again before entering their destination. Even with Uryuu's justification, the fact the Ulquiorra was still alive may as well mean that their fate will cross paths some time. Orihime realized Uryuu was still staring at her intensely and trying to decipher her expression so, once again, she tried to ease his mind by being herself.

"Alright lets get this exam over with!" Orihime cried cheerfully, throwing her arms in the air, but causing all the books she had in her arms to drop on her foot, "Oww…"

* * *

Meanwhile in the castle of Hueco Mundo, Las Noches, Grimmjow now reigned as King with Baraggan out of the way. Neliel Tu Odelschwanck rejoined the Espada having regained her reiatsu back over time and hence her body had reverted back into her voluptuous form much to Nnoitra's dispair, but to make sure Nnoitra doesn't go haywire with his inferiority complex again, Nel obliged to be a rank lower than him. As for Nnoitra, he is also a survivor thanks to Ulquiorra who had come in time to save him from bleeding to death. Baby Nel's drool could only do so much and utterly disgusted the beaten Espada. Tia Harribel decided to withdraw from the Espada to start over in the deserts of Hueco Mundo and grieve over the loss of her Fraccion.

The four remaining Espada currently sat at their round, meeting table silently and awkwardly with Grimmjow at the head of the table of course. Ulquiorra sat back lazily in his chair and glared at a spec of dust on the table while Nel smiled widely at Nnoitra for no apparent reason causing the latter to give her a nasty look to make her go away, but to no avail.

"Tch," Grimmjow started, "What's left ta do here at this dump. I'm tired a makin' hollows cause havoc in the World of Living."

"Why are we having this meeting, Grimmjow?" Ulquiorra cut straight to the point.

"Can't we just mess around with that Kurosaki boy again?" he whined. He was really bored after all the events of the Winter War. He feared the rest of his pitiful life would just be loafing around in Las Noches.

"Itsygo!" was Nel's only input. Nnoitra scowled.

"We will surely be killed and/or captured by Soul Society," Ulquiorra inquired. But he knew this was his chance to see the girl without getting nonsense from his comrades. His pride wouldn't allow it. Even though Ulquiorra would occasionally send Hollows to spy on the girl, the info he received failed to evoke the same reactions that arose from when he was with her.

"I have an idea!" Nel chirped, "Can't we just get a gigai from that Urahara Kisuke guy that drains our reiatsu into a point where we can't even cast a Bala?"

"Who would want that Nelliel?!" Nnoitra shouted at her. She slouched in her seat defeated. "I would…," she mumbled to herself, but no one cared to have her repeat louder. Everyone sat quietly for a few seconds, now lost in their situation. Grimmjow was starting to think that he would rather be dead or captured than endure life like this until he dies some pitiful death.

"I can possibly arrange somethin'."

Three of the Espada turned to where they thought they heard an eerie voice speak, while Ulquiorra just sat still in his seat already knowing who it was by his reiatsu alone. He had actually been here for a while, but these simpletons had let their senses down.

"Gin? What brings ya 'ere?" Grimmjow squinted his eyes to make some form of the shadow at the corner of the room.

Gin stepped out of the shadows, his infamous grin that stretched from ear to ear plastered on his face.

* * *

A loud rattle shook Orihime awake from her doze, forcing her to lift her sticky head up from the drool that glued her face to her books. A Senkai Gate from Soul Society to the World of Living had opened right in her living room. The otherworldly light temporarily blinded her making her squint her eyes as she tried to see who was coming through.

"Oooooriiiihiiiiimeee-chaaaaan!" Large breasts enveloped her face in darkness and arms wrapped around her neck in a hug before she could make out a figure from the light, but she already knew who it was.

"Hi Rangiku-san," Orihime muffled into her cleavage.

Rangiku stepped back and gave her an apologetic look, but immediately headbutted her face to envelop herself in Orihime's bosom instead. She sobbed loudly while shaking her head into her breasts initiating a sort of boob massage on her head. Orihime could tell she was just having a fit rather than a real case of emergency so she just patted her head.

"What's wrong, Rangiku-san?"

"Gin said… G-Gin said…," she paused to give a loud, muffled cry into her shirt and released her face screaming, "He said I have wrinkles near my eyes!"

Orihime stifled a laugh and gasped instead, playing along. Rangiku leaned back and sniffled, a frown deeper than the Grand Canyon on her face.

"He shouldn't say stuff like that to a lady right, Orihime-chan?"

"No way! He shouldn't!" Orihime nodded in agreement. Orihime couldn't help but feel a little jealous for the older woman. She was beautiful, young, funny, strong, and was in a perfect, painfully romantic relationship with her evicted best friend. Whereas Orihime still secretly harbored unrequited love for Kurosaki Ichigo and now that the orange-haired boy had a career for himself far from Orihime's interests, it was even harder for her to bond with him.

"Ah! I have a delivery for you, Orihime-chan," Rangiku said as if she did not just make a scene in her home.

"Oooh, I love gifts, Rangiku-san!" She hoped it would be some Japanese Sweets from Soul Society.

"Hmm," Rangiku gave her an testing look, "Not sure if you'll like this one."

As if on cue, out of the light of the Senkai Gate, Orihime could make out a foot clad in black step out. She felt her heart stop beating. She knew this reiatsu and it's still as suffocating now as it was before. The coincidence that he would appear now when she was just thinking of him a few hours ago was too much for her to believe. She knew this day would come, but she never thought of how she should react. From the light appeared a real, living Ulquiorra Cifer dressed in his Arrancar outfit, but his bone mask was nowhere to be seen. A Hell Butterfly was perched on his head, fluttering its wings.

Ulquiorra tried to shoo the insect away with a pale hand, but ended up smacking his own head with the motion, the butterfly hanging tightly to his ebony hair. Instantly, the mood was shattered and Orihime busted out laughing and snorting at the scene. Ulquiorra's frown deepened, but every other aspect of his emotionless face remained apathetic.

"Onna," he gave her a cold, hard stare, but that alone could not subdue the oblivious girl from the fit she was having on the floor of her living room. Rangiku was now standing holding a hand up to her mouth to stifle a giggle as she watched Orihime roll around clutching her gut. "What do you find so amusing?"

"You…tried…so…hard…to make a fashionably…late entrance," she breathed out between her laughter, the back of one hand now resting on her eyes like as if she had a headache and the other arm wrapped around her stomach, "but you ruined it!" And with that, she was back to rolling on the floor again. The butterfly left its little nest on Ulquiorra's head and went through the Senkai Gate, shutting the doors behind it.

After what seemed like five minutes, Orihime was able to maintain control of her giggles and sat up, wiping a tear from her eye, her shoulders still visibly shaking from the adrenaline. Just when she thought she had managed to calm down, one last snort escaped from her lips causing another spiel of laughter.

"Why must you always make so much noise, onna? It's quite annoying," though contrary to Ulquiorra's words he found amusement in watching the woman make a fool of herself. The Hollows he had sent to watch her never reported to him the way she acted, only the actions she committed. This is the experience he had arrived for. Undeniably, he _wanted_ to be tortured by lust and greed and found himself unable to quench his thirst for more.

_You shouldn't be afraid to gain a heart._

He wasn't afraid and he was determined to prove that to her.

Orihime let out a deep sigh after she stopped laughing and looked up at Ulquiorra who towered over her from where she sat. She got up and tugged the bottom of her shirt down.

"So what brings you here, Ulquiorra?" She felt her ears warm up in shyness having realized that Ulquiorra Cifer, strong and able, was standing right in front of her in her living room and staring daggers at her. She took note that he had indeed gained an inch or two during the span of five years, but everything else remained the same. His eyes, his hair, his pale skin, his dark lips…

"Well, in a nutshell," Rangiku went ahead to explain for him, "the Espada were bored out of their minds and want to come hang out here."

"Espada? As in there's more?" Orihime felt a little concerned.

"Grimmjow Jaegerjaques, Neliel Tu Odelschwanck, and Nnoitra Gilga have also arrived with me," Ulquiorra answered as matter-of-factually.

"So are you guys using a gigai?"

"Actually, Kurotsuchi-taichou took this as an opportunity to test something on the Espada and as a successful result, the Espada can now _look_ human by taking off their skull parts! Though it does render them unable to cast ceros and release their swords, though," Rangiku chimed in. She was partially enthusiastic towards this side quest because Gin had initiated it so she wanted to do her best to support him. Since he was evicted from Soul Society, he now acts as a medium from Hueco Mundo to Soul Society just like Urahara Kisuke is the medium for the World of Living and Soul Society. _Anything to help him get back to Soul Society with me_, she mused with self-intentions. She continued, "but if the Espada ever need their powers, they can just pull out their masks like whatever Ichigo does with his Hollow mask."

Orihime considered this information slowly for a few seconds, imagining what the Espada would look like without their bone fragments. She thought of the tattoos imprinted on their faces, Nel and Grimmjow's brightly colored hair, Ulquiorra's pale skin, and Nnoitra's tattooed tongue, inhumane height and missing eye. They certainly wouldn't look human…

"What about their Hollow holes?"

"Do you expect us to fill it with plaster and paint over it?" Ulquiorra glowered at her, tired of her questions already.

"I guess not… Well, then where are you staying Ulquiorra?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know? Then how about the other Espada?"

"It doesn't concern me and before you pester me about the man Urahara Kisuke, that shinigami has no room for the four of us."

An awkward silence befell the trio having all questions answered, but one. She couldn't make herself ask Ulquiorra in front of Rangiku, though. Orihime suddenly found interest in her socks when she felt Ulquiorra was about to burn a hole straight through the area between her eyes with his intense stare.

"Well!" Rangiku clapped her hands together, sensing the dark mood, "since I already did my job to bring Ulquiorra to your world, I'm going to head back to Soul Society. And don't worry Orihime-chan. If the Espada want to use their masks, they have to have approval from Soul Society just like we have to gain approval for our Limit Release," Rangiku unsheathed her sword and unlocked a Shikai Door right beside her, a Hell Butterfly appearing to escort her, "See ya, Orihime-chan!" and with a wave of her hand, she stepped through the gate, closing the doors behind her. Which left her and Ulquiorra alone.

After a few seconds, Orihime decided to break the silence. She looked back up and looked straight into Ulquiorra's eyes.

"Why did you come here, Ulquiorra?"

"Grimmjow insis—"

"No, I meant, why are you _here_," she interrupted, motioning her hands around her surroundings, "in my living room? Why did you come to me?"

He responded with silence. Orihime stubbornly waited for an answer for a minute then gave up.

"I don't know if I can take care of yo—"

"I don't need help from trash like you. I am perfectly capable of maintaining my physical being," he paused, "except for hygiene purposes."

"Ah I see, I see… Well, I don't think there's enough room for two people here. I just have a small one bedroom apartment…"

"Matsumoto Rangiku brought me here having informed me that she often inhabits your home, implying that if you have room for her, you will have room for me."

"But… you're a grown…man…," _wait, Hime. You're a thriving 21 year old woman. You can handle growing up a little…with Ulquiorra Cifer…_

She sighed and plopped down on her sofa, Ulquiorra still watching her from where he first arrived. She wondered what the other Espada would be doing. She stretched out her legs in front of her and tried reaching for her toes with her fingers to stretch her back.

"It's fine with me if you don't mind the couch or a futon," she yawned, "but I have to study a lot for school so don't make it too hard on me okay?" She got off the couch and sat back down on the floor where she initially was before Rangiku came in, "Make yourself at home, Ulquiorra!" She motioned her hand to the couch where she was just at.

Ulquiorra casually strolled a few steps to reach the couch and sat down, leaning back and crossing his arms against his chest, still studying Orihime who went back to studying. She tried to ignore the feeling of being watched and knotted her eyebrows in concentration, but to no avail. She didn't know what to do to make him stop!

"Onna, what are you doing?"

"I have an anatomy and physiology exam tomorrow, Ulquiorra!" she groaned and flipped through the many pages of notes she still had to cover. She wasn't going to get much done tonight. Ulquiorra just frowned deeper and picked up one of the books that were on the floor. It read _The Human Body_._ Interesting, _he thought. He opened the book and started to read. Satisfied that Ulquiorra's intense pressure had finally lifted off her shoulders, she yawned again and went back to studying.

* * *

Orihime had fallen asleep on her table after an hour of hardcore studying. Drool seeped from her lips and covered her notes in slime. Ulquiorra thought it was disgusting, but continue to peer over his book to watch her occasionally twitch in her sleep. He bent over and reached a hand over, moved her bangs away from her face, and tucked it behind her ear, noticing that her hairpins were no longer where they used to be. _Could she have casually cast aside her only protection?_ Ulquiorra's curiosity was getting the best of him again. He would awaken the woman to ask her himself, but he wanted to examine her quiet state as well.

He got off the couch and kneeled beside the girl. She was sleeping on her right arm while her left hung loosely beside her and her face facing the couch. Without touching her, he looked around her from as many angles as he could pull off, but he couldn't see the area around her neck due to her hair draping over it. Extending a bony hand to her red-brown hair, he grouped up all her hair and moved it to curtain over her right shoulder which gave him a clearer view of her face. Orihime's flushed face was squished on her frail arm, her eyebrows knit together, round, pink lips parted slightly, her breaths shallow and quiet, long, full lashes occasionally fluttering in her sleep. He lowered his gaze from her eyes to her lips to her long, vulnerable, bare neck and finally came upon the hairclips. They were fastened around the collar of her t-shirt.

Though he had reached his goal, he found it hard to look away. He wondered if any other woman could look as attractive as her and make him feel the way she makes him feel. He furrowed his brows and took a moment to genuinely think about it and but out of all the women he had encountered, he realized not one of them had made an impact, if at all, nearly as much as Inoue Orihime. _They are all trash._

Shamelessly, he soaked in the image of her position with her eyes, observing the way her shapely bottom stuck out with her feet tucked underneath, but her back was arched inwards, pushing her breasts out just to be squeezed against the table. She looked so vulnerable and the fact that he had been touching her hair this whole time and she had not even stirred amused him even more. He wondered how far he could go to test this forbidden fruit.

He leaned over, eyes half-lidded, his lips hovering mere inches from the collarbone of the sleeping girl. Gently placing his hand on the back of her neck, he closed the gap between his lips and her skin and brushed his black-tinted lips on her and nuzzled his nose in the crook of her neck. He nibbled on the skin there delicately, tasting her and relishing in her scent. He stopped and breathed softly over his bite and licked it tenderly, gliding the hand from her neck down to the small of her back. The heat in his crotch was almost unbearable. He leaned back and removed his hands to look at his territory, but instead was distracted by a pair of wide, gray orbs looking right at him.

"Ul-Ulquiorra?!" Orihime breathed out, her eyes full of shock.

…

Ulquiorra lay on her couch, staring at the ceiling, and sighed softly in irritation. His pale cheek currently harboring a red imprint the shape of Orihime's hand.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry if it seems a little random haha. I'm doing my best here! If you like my fic so far please drop a review! It makes a little noob like me very happy~**

**I actually already have Chapter 4 written, but I'm going to wait a bit and see if you guys like this story so far. So if you guys take a little bit of your time to drop a review, I might post it sooner!  
**


	4. Snooze

**Welcome to the 4th Chapter! Thanks for sticking with me this far~ I hope you won't regret it!**

* * *

"You know," Nel glanced behind her, "if you want to play tag with me so much, you could just ask, Nnoitra."

Nnoitra scowled, his hands in his pockets, and glared at his surroundings. He continued to follow Nel silently wherever she was going. Nel knew she wasn't going to get the answer she wanted so she froze in step and turned on her heel to face him. Nnoitra wasn't paying attention to what was in front of him so he would have nearly walked over Nel if she didn't stomp on his foot.

"Yow! What was that for Neliel?!" Nnoitra snapped his head towards her and gave her a dirty look.

"Nnoitra-san," Nel pouted and gave him a puppy-eyed expression, "Tell me why you're following me. You know we're free to go wherever we want as long as we don't hurt anyone."

He looked down at the teal-haired girl, reigning in every inch of him that begged him to form his skull eye patch back and kill this bitch. He bent down and leaned towards her to glare at her at her eye level, "Well, where _else_ am I supposed to go?" He sneered in his nasal voice, "That bastard Ulquiorra was the first to volunteer to be that asshole Kurotsuchi's test subject so he was able to leave first!"

When Ulquiorra came out of the laboratory as proof that he was fine, the rest of the Espada went in at the same time. When Nnoitra came to, Grimmjow and Ulquiorra were nowhere to be seen and Neliel was waiting patiently outside for him much to his dismay.

Nel blushed from his sudden proximity and took a step back, realizing like they looked like a couple who were about to kiss in public.

"Well, you would think you're independent enough to find your own place to stay just like Ulquiorra and Grimmy are," Nel retorted smugly. Nnoitra wrinkled his nose, disgusted by her tone, but kept silent. Nel turned around and proceeded to parade down her path triumphantly, feeling like she had tamed her puppy.

Actually, Nel was very lost and she had no idea how she ended up where she is now. The World of Living had so many paths that lead to a dead end! She felt like as soon as she was able to exit the maze of one building, she was in another right away! One building had tons of clothes and the other had a bunch of perfume that made her gag and gasp for air and, currently, she and Nnoitra seemed to be stuck in a maze with a buttload of people shopping for bags, food, and clothing. It was all very noisy.

"Ah! Over there Nnoitra! We can sleep there!" She skipped to where she was pointing and jumped high into the air, landing on a nice, fluffy mattress. Nnoitra sauntered over to where she was rolling around on the sheets and glanced at his surroundings. Humans were staring at them and giving them nasty looks. One little girl passed by, pointing a finger at Nel, who remained ignorant in her bliss. Nnoitra wanted to bala the grin off that midget, but he couldn't so he lifted the black eye patch covering his left eye, exposing his toothed Hollow hole and stuck his tattooed tongue out provocatively. The girl's eyes grew huge and she ran away screaming.

Nnoitra turned back to yell at Nel that this wasn't a place to sleep, but his mouth hung open with no sound coming out. Nel had already fallen peacefully asleep, her chest rising and falling and her body sprawled across the bed. He had seen this peaceful, sleeping expression before during what he thought would be his last moments. She had been there. As he fell, he watched her open her eyes and he saw, in her eyes, that she was watching him. Her voice was the last thing he heard at before falling unconscious.

_Nnoi…tra._

"Oy, Nel. Wake up. We need to get out of here," he kicked the bed causing Nel to sit up immediately and let out a small squeal of surprise. She gave him an apologetic look with a big smile on her face. Nnoitra had never felt so irritated in his life. He was so sick of this girl treating him like a friend. They were enemies damn it!

"If you wanted to cuddle in bed with me so badly, you don't have to ask," she said in a hushed voice. Nnoitra was 100% sure that Nel was trying to provoke him when she rolled onto her side to face him, her left arm supporting her head and her right arm tracing a circle on the bed next to her. Her breasts, now obeying gravity, squished together making her cleavage look deeper, her waist dipped in just to rise steeply back up to make the curve of her ass and down again for her shapely thighs. He couldn't help but gawk at her promiscuity. The lanky, black-haired man shut his eyes and felt a vein popping at his temple.

"Ah_, fuck it_," Nnoitra complained and left to ask for a map of the place or some way to find a place to stay. Nel stuck out her bottom lip in a childish pout and then flopped back down on the bed and curled up to go back to sleep despite all the people that passed by staring at her.

* * *

A shattering, repetitive noise woke Orihime up from her sleep. Without shifting her body, she reached an arm over to her night stand and searched for her alarm clock by touch. When she felt the familiar button, she slammed the machine off and sat up in her bed feeling groggy.

_6:30 AM_

She sighed. She was really getting tired of Grad school. She missed the days that she could schedule her classes any time she wanted. Suddenly, she remembered that Ulquiorra was in her apartment. Feeling self-conscious, she tamed her hair by running her fingers through and patted down her wrinkled clothing. Orihime opened the door of her bedroom quietly and peeked around the corner of her living room. Ulquiorra was sitting up on the couch staring blankly at the wall in front of him, only his head was showing above the mound of blanket and his black hair a total mess on his head. He was huddling in the comforter she had thrown at him after she slapped him…

_Oh my God_, she pulled down the collar of her shirt. She couldn't see the mark so she ran straight to the bathroom and slammed the door behind her. She pulled down her collar again and looked at the mirror and she saw, to her horror, Ulquiorra's love bite: rose red and right in the nook of her collar bone. She groaned. _I have a physical examination today!_ Which meant she will only be clad in a sports bra and spandex shorts with her hair tied up so that her lab partner can evaluate her muscles.

Who would've thought the guy was such a pervert! Orihime thought as she scrutinized the hickey in the mirror. _First, he shreds my clothes in Las Noches and now he's sucking skin?! Ugh!_

Meanwhile, Ulquiorra was still in a daze and staring at the wall. That annoying contraption that went off a few minutes earlier had startled the Hueco Mundo out of him and he found himself unable to rest. He heard the shower in her bathroom sputter into life and pour a steady stream. Then he heard a loud sigh that ended up sounding like a moan echo in the bathroom. Ulquiorra grew tense. He cursed himself for being so vulgar, but he couldn't stop the perverse thoughts from leaking into his consciousness. He freed an arm from the blanket and slapped himself, but than an image of himself slapping Orihime's ass as she bent over for the soap she just dropped flooded into his mind. He cursed aloud.

Not ten minutes later, he heard the shower slow to a stop and the drawing of a curtain open. He sighed in relief, but the ache in his lower abdomen had yet to go away. He fidgeted uncomfortably. Ulquiorra had no idea why his senses heightened twenty-fold when it came to that woman. Not once in his life had he ever experienced… what was that human phrase? Blue balls?

Orihime unlocked the bathroom door and pushed it open with her foot to let the pressure of steam, heat, and smell flow out while she brushed her teeth. When the condensation had cleared up from the mirror she was aghast that the hickey was still there and bright as day. She quickly rinsed her mouth with tap water, spat it out, and wiped her mouth with her towel, then stomped out of the bathroom, into the small hallway, into the living room until she stood in front of her disgruntled roommate. Ulquiorra recoiled in revulsion. The woman was only dressed in a small towel.

"Must you wear such inappropriate things, onna?" he hissed at her, trying to focus on her eyes and not her body.

"Ulquiorra, I want you to look at what _you_ did," she pointed at the bite. Ulquiorra shifted his gaze down to his mark and felt an overwhelming sense of pride, "I have to deal with people, you know!" she almost shrieked, her face turning a tone of red in embarrassment. She tucked her arms beneath her breasts and bit her bottom lip, trying to maintain her cool.

"I insist you wear something more suitable for education and not prostitution," he replied defiantly. He swore that even the wind could undress her at this rate. He noticed that her breasts made a delicious movement at the corner of his eye when she crossed her arms and the way she was biting her lip made her look undeniably seductive.

"_Ugh_!"

Orihime had enough with this pervert. She marched back into her room to continue her morning routine. She wanted to kick him out so badly, but she knew he had nowhere else to go. She was already thankful it was only him that came and not the other three Espada. Orihime dreaded dealing with Grimmjow and Nnoitra.

When Orihime was dressed and ready for school, she walked out of her room and into the living room, looking straight at the front door and refusing to look at Ulquiorra. She mentally said goodbye to a picture of Sora at the other corner of the living room and opened the door to leave, but before she shut the door behind her, she couldn't help but glance at Ulquiorra who was still staring at the wall in front of him.

"Um…," she bit her bottom lip again, "if you get bored, you can look through my collection of DVDs under the entertainment set and watch them. Just open the DVD player, put the disc in the slot, close it, and press play. Bye, Ulquiorra!" He made no response so she closed the door quietly. She sighed and turned around sharply just to bump into someone that was standing right behind her. She looked up.

"Yo, Inoue." And there stood her unrequited love, Kurosaki Ichigo, a hand raised in greeting.

"K-K-Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime sputtered. _What is he doing here_? She felt for her backpack straps to fiddle around with in her nervousness, "What brings you here, Kurosaki-kun?"

"Ahh, it's kinda funny actually," he lifted his right arm and scratched the back of his head. _Oh good, by the way he's acting, it seems he didn't hear me say Ulquiorra's name._ He would surely go haywire if he learned that the Cuatro Espada was living with her, "Grimmjow came to my place earlier looking for a place to live."

"No way! That's crazy!" she giggled awkwardly. She stepped forward with Ichigo and walked a good distance from her home to make sure Ulquiorra wouldn't eavesdrop if he chose to.

"Yeah, I just wanted to tell you ahead of time in case you see him again and freak out," he waved his hands around frantically when he said that, "I mean, I'm not saying you would!"

"Hai, hai, Kurosaki-kun," she nodded, appreciating his concern.

"I think three other Espada are here, but they can't really harm anyone without Soul Society's permission," he shoved his hands into his pockets while he walked, "Last I heard, Nel and Nnoitra just got kicked out of the mall, but I also heard Ulquiorra is somewhere around here too." He looked sternly at Orihime, making her blush, "If you see him and you don't feel comfortable, just call me, Inoue. Any time. Whether it be 3 o' clock in the morning, or whatever, don't hesitate to ask for my help if you need it."

Orihime couldn't help but feel a little peeved. She was no longer the vulnerable, inexperienced girl she was five years ago, but she couldn't reply that to the boy she loved. She knew he was just concerned for her well-being. Especially since she hadn't brought up the subject of Ulquiorra during these past few years. He probably thought she was scarred for life.

"Thanks, Kurosaki-kun. I appreciate it," she said, trying her hardest to give him her best smile.

"Alright, well I'm off. I gotta see how Grimmjow is doing before I head out to work. See ya, Inoue!" He took a hand out of his pocket and did that manly way of waving goodbye.

"Bye, Kurosaki-kun!"

_After all this time, he still calls me by my last name. Yet, since the first day he met Rukia, he called her by her first name…_

* * *

Grimmjow lay quietly on the bed that, apparently, Kuchiki Rukia had used before. He sighed loudly as he stared at the ceiling.

"Man, this is just as borin' as Hueco Mundo." Though, he didn't regret his decision. He knew there were plenty of things to do in the World of Living, but he didn't realize that it would cost so much human money to do anything. Even eating. He considered scaring people to give him money, but he didn't want to give Ichigo's dad a bad reputation when he was kind enough to offer him shelter during his stay.

After a few more minutes of audibly complaining to himself, he got off the bed and headed to the kitchen to find something to eat. The blue-haired man yawned and lifted his arms to stretch them and then crossed them behind his head as he walked.

"Yo, Grimmjow," Ichigo said while he washed his dishes in the sink. Grimmjow grunted in reply and pulled a chair back, sat down, and leaned back, putting his feet on the table.

"Get your feet off my table!"

"Where's that chick, Yuzu? I'm starvin'," grumbled aloud, ignoring him. Ichigo held back every impulse to beat the shit out of the guy. Again. But he had no time for quarreling.

"Yuzu and Karin's already heading to school. She left your food in the fridge, by the way," Ichigo motioned to the appliance, "just eat what you want, but not everything, 'kay? I gotta head to work now. Uhh…," he paused, "I don't really know what you should do to entertain yourself with so here's one thousand yen."

"Sweet!" Grimmjow snatched the cash out of Ichigo's hand as soon as he pulled it out. He already felt like a rich man. Grimmjow didn't understand the currency in this world (or country), but he knew only one way to find out. Ichigo frowned and finished drying his plate and headed towards the door to leave.

"You better behave, Grimmjow," Ichigo sent him a warning glare.

"Yeah, yeah. Scram, punk, or I'll kick ya outta here."

After Ichigo left, Grimmjow decided to ditch the cold food and find himself a nice human meal. He cleaned up in the bathroom, taking extra time in admiring his pearly canines and smoldering, hot looks. He cupped some water in his hand and combed his hair back wet. Feeling perfectly awesome, he also headed out the door.

_Now, where's that bastard Ulquiorra and Nnoitra and Neliel?_ He mulled. They had to be somewhere around here. Nel and Nnoitra had never been in the World of Living so they were probably having trouble finding shelter. Not that it bothered him or anything.

Grimmjow walked through all the parks and searched by peering through the slides and overturning every bench. He even scanned the tree branches above him as he walked, but found no one. Giving up, he decided to go to the more urban parts of Karakura Town and just hang around there with his wad of cash.

He was trotting peacefully to some unknown destination when he heard someone call his name.

"Grimmjow! Grimmjow-kunnn!"

In the distance, he could recognize the flowing brown-red hair of a youthful girl, her tits bouncing as she ran towards him. He smirked.

"Well, whaddya know. It's our princess," he sneered. He examined the girl from head to toe as she stopped in front of him and doubled over to catch her breath_. Damn, she's gotten hotter_.

"So what are you going, Grimmjow-kun?" She asked in one breath.

Grimmjow didn't want to admit to her that he was searching for the other Espada like some pathetic, lonely boy, "Ah, y'know. Lookin' for some bitches to bang and fights to win." He shrugged.

"If you're looking for Ulquiorra, he's at my place," she giggled somehow getting the clue that Grimmjow felt lost alone. He cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Huh, so Ulquiorra found a place to stay…," he mused. _And at the babe's place, too._ He was about to dwell on what dirty things Ulquiorra was about to get into when Orihime interrupted.

"Well here's one thousand yen," she waved the bill in his face, "so go have fun!"

Grimmjow took the cash and gave her his signature grin.

If he knew he was going to be paid to live here, he would've come here sooner.

* * *

Yasutora Sado was also walking to school when he heard a familiar voice laughing in the distance ahead of him. He looked up and peered through his unkempt bangs to focus on the woman running towards him.

"Sadoooooooo!" he heard a baby-like voice shout from the woman. He noticed a few feet behind her was a skinny, lanky guy. He tensed up realizing who it was, but before he could get into an offensive stance, he was bulldozed over by the teal-haired woman.

"Sado! Long time no see!" She sang while giving him a bear hug.

"Uhh…," he mumbled. The girl was choking him, but he didn't want to be rude by pushing her away.

"Nelliel, get off him. You're scaring the guy. He looks like he doesn't even know who you are," Sado heard the familiar nasal voice and tensed up again, worried that he had come to wreak havoc. The girl got off him and placed a finger on her full lip innocently.

"Oooh yeah that's right," she nodded to herself, "Sado, you haven't seen me in my real form before right? It's me! Nel!"

"Nel?" Sado's eyes widened and eyebrows rose, lifting his bangs from his face so he could see her more clearly. Yes, that was certainly Nel, with her large ochre eyes and tattoo etched on the bridge of her nose. He looked behind Nel and frowned. "Nnoitra. What are you guys planning?"

"We're honestly just visiting! We got permission from Soul Society," Nel grinned, "but they aren't funding us any money or anything so we've just been sleeping in this store called Ikea. Did you know they let people sleep there and not disturb them? Unlike some _other_ store…," she pouted.

Sado knew where she was getting at. He lived alone just like Orihime and he didn't mind helping a friend in need. Nnoitra for one had hurt him and his friends.

"I promise you, Nnoitra will do no harm!" Nel chirped in as if he heard his thoughts and giggled, "He's like my puppy!" Knowing she had pissed Nnoitra off by saying that, she ran away towards the park.

"You're messing with me, huh!" Nnoitra yelled after her, raising a fist in the air threateningly.

She stuck her tongue out at him and jeered, "As if, _animal_!"

"I'm not here for a play date, bitch!" And he ran off to chase her down. To do what when he succeeded Sado couldn't even imagine.

_This was going to be interesting._

* * *

"You _monster_! Stop!"

"Only a monster can make you feel this good, princess."

A pause. Then a loud, prolonged mewl.

"Mmm…_yeah_. It hurts so good."

"_Yeahhh_, Fuck me harder, you hairy _beast_!"

Ulquiorra heard the door rattle open, the shuffling of someone entering, and then the door slam, but he paid no attention and continued to glue his forest green eyes on the television.

"Ul-Ul-ULQUIORRA!" Orihime screeched, "Where did you get that?!"

"I found it at the same location you had shown me your DVDs are," Ulquiorra responded coolly without removing his eyes from the pornography, "I don't understand why you humans record such obscene things. Do you find pleasure in this fetish?"

"Oh my God!" She had totally forgotten she hid her "special collection" behind the paper covering of her DVD cases. She shunpo'd as fast as a human could to Ulquiorra, snatched the remote from his hand and shut the TV off.

"That is _so_ none of your business, Ulquiorra!" Her ears were burning like mad.

Orihime noticed that Ulquiorra's hair was still disheveled and he was still huddled in his blanket like he had not moved once since she left.

"Did you even eat yet?" she asked to quickly change the subject.

"I don't need to eat," he responded with lethargy.

"But you can right?" Orihime asked this, her mouth the shape of a small "o" in interest.

He shifted his gaze to her without turning his head, "Of course."

Orihime smiled, her grin reaching from ear to ear which puzzled Ulquiorra. _What is she so happy about?_ He lowered his brows to make a bored expression.

"You haven't cleaned up since you arrived, though. You should go take a shower! I'll get the bath ready for you," she dropped her books on the floor next to the table in the living room and skipped to the bathroom.

_So now, Ulquiorra strips me naked, gives me a hickey, and watches porn?! Goodness_, she shook her head. _What a sexually deprived boy._

* * *

**Orihime, you have no room to talk! For now at least hehe.**

**Alright! Thanks for reading guys! Have you guys noticed I like to quote word for word from the Japanese subbed anime?  
And sorry if it seems like this chapter is boring and long. I had to explain where the Espada would stay and I'm doing my best to keep them in character so it had to take a bit of writing room. The fluff will start next chapter!**

**Please drop a review on your way out! I will be forever grateful~  
PS. 10,000 Y = about $10  
**


	5. Time Stops For No One

**Welcome to the 5****th**** Chapter of "Just A Bit Longer"!  
****This chapter is going to have so much fluff, I could make a dog out of it.**

**And if you like your soup to have more corn****,****I highly recommend you listen to these songs while you read**** (it won't take 2 minutes for YouTube to load these songs; if it does, shame on your interwebz!):  
**_**Unmei no Hito**_** by Fujita Maiko (for NnoiNel)  
**_**Renai Sashin **_**by Ai Otsuka (while you read UlquiHime)**

Enjoy!

* * *

Aizen Sousuke sat confidently in his chair, his signature smirk still recognizable under his bindings. Though he was bound by powerful kido and guarded by Soul Society's top security, his confidence had never wavered. Of course he had foreseen Kurosaki Ichigo to gain a new power that would seemingly put his plans to an end; therefore, he had included that factor within his large-scale plan.

Gin's betrayal was inevitable. Ever since he saw the boy, he knew Gin would be the one person that could surprise him. Sousuke immediately ushered the boy into his squad, eager to know how he planned to kill him. Unfortunately, Gin was too predictable. Without the silver-haired boy telling him his personal affairs, he noticed the way he looked at Matsumoto Rangiku from a distance.

_Love_.

And beneath every action, there's a purpose. A reason. And he knew, that Gin's very existence was meant to destroy his plans. Thus, he had countered that possibility also. The only drawback was time itself.

If Kurosaki Ichigo were to use his Final Getsuga a few moments later, he was sure that it would finish him, but Ichigo arrived earlier than he predicted. Thus, unfortunately for him, he released his attack at the time he predicted.

And according to Ichigo's behavior, Ulquiorra had failed to kill him. This step would have been necessary to cause him to turn into a hollow that would definitely break his moral even if temporary and buy him time. But Ulquiorra's failure had gone unexpected. Sousuke had assumed from scarce evidence that Ulquiorra harbored a secret ability that he had yet to reveal to him and his fellow Arrancar. From what he had learned from observing Ichigo, he had assumed Ulquiorra would be forced to release this power as a last resort due to Ichigo overpowering him.

He did not know if the Cuatro Espada is still alive, but that shouldn't deter him from his goal.

Sitting, waiting, and watching the sun rise and fall, dancing with the moon across the sky from what little sight he had from his prison window. He knew that he had been watching this exhibition replay each day for five years.

He decided to give them another month of peace until he would stir the gears that would cause the clock to resume its ticking.

* * *

A certain ginger-haired princess rolled over her bed and onto her back and yawned, morning dew clinging to the edges of her grey eyes. She stretched her slender legs and lifted her arms high above her head and sighed contentedly when she felt her muscles had loosened up and her back make a series of muted pops of released pressure.

_What a nice dream_, Orihime thought. A smile curled the corners of her lips.

In her first dream, she had dreamt of going on a nice, high-end cruise with some faceless, handsome boy. Orihime had unknowingly signed them up on a couples' cruise, thus forcing them to act as a married couple to avoid any unnecessary situations. They had ended up getting closer; countless moments that made her heart squeeze under her chest painfully. It was awfully romantic.

She rolled onto her side then onto her other side repeatedly like some rabid fangirl, hugging a body pillow tightly between her appendages.

"Kurosaki-kun!" she squealed to herself softly. She shut her eyes tightly in blissful embarrassment.

The next dream was kind of strange. She was a prostitute in a city called Hueco Mundo, but was rescued by some faceless, gorgeously dark, handsome piano prodigy. They had to go through a lot together, but they ended up getting married and having a family together and…

She squealed again.

"Onna, shouldn't you be getting ready for school?"

"Ulquiorra!" She bolted upright to see Ulquiorra leaning against her door, his arms crossed over his chest. She glanced at the clock.

_7:20 AM_

"Oh my God!" She shrieked, "Why didn't you wake me up sooner, Ulquiorra?! I know you always wake up around the same time!" She hopped off her bed, scrambled to her dresser, and started to throw clothes here and there until she found a good pair of jeans.

The only reason Ulquiorra would wake up so early in the morning is when that noisy contraption would go off just to stop and be repeated seven minutes later. Since it did not go off this morning, he had a few more minutes of sleep for himself… just to be woken up by some insistent, high-pitched noise and the ruffling of sheets coming from Orihime's room. Ulquiorra wondered for a moment if she were doing something indecent, but already deemed the woman as unable to do so early in the morning. The girl barely had the consciousness to make a bowl of cereal.

"I'm so late, Ulquiorra! What do I _do_?" she looked at him fearfully, her bottom lip quivering in anxiety. Her grey eyes were wide in panic and her face flush from disorientation. Why didn't she look like this when he would try to scare her? He was definitely amused by her distraught.

"I might as well not go to school today! My exam started at seven!"

"Get dressed," he demanded nonchalantly and walked away from her room.

She watched the way his back turned away from her, instantly reminded of the time he had spared her life in Las Noches. She violently shook her head and patted her cheeks. _Focus, hime_.

Orihime prepared herself as quickly as possible, unfortunately having to skip breakfast. When she turned to face Ulquiorra to ask him if he had planned something, she noticed he was dressed casually to go out with the clothes she had bought him. He was wearing a loose-fitting, half-long sleeved black shirt with a loose white collar that accentuated his broad shoulders and long torso and dark blue jeans with black _Converse_ shoes. He looked like such a dark, classy… and handsome character…

_Dark_… Her eyes widened in revelation.

"Come with me, onna," Ulquiorra walked out the door with Orihime a step behind him in a daze. He closed the door after Orihime and locked the door with his key.

"Ulquiorra, how—Eek!" Orihime suddenly felt the world drop from under her feet and the sky fall over her head until she felt her surroundings still. In Ulquiorra's arms.

She peered up at him from her bridal-style position and felt the blood rise to her face. She thought it was embarrassing enough when Ichigo had thrown her over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes once, but she felt like dying in embarrassment in Ulquiorra's arms. She could feel the edge of his hollow hole underneath his shirt on her cheek.

Ulquiorra looked down at the brown haired girl and found satisfaction in the way her cheeks flourished a tint of red and the way she averted her eyes from him in shyness. He liked this expression. He felt an unknown emotion rise within him when he observed how she seemed to mold into the very crook of his arms and the pressure of her cheek resting against the area where his human heart would be. She felt so warm. _Almost too hot_, he felt. He was afraid he would drop and break her delicate body.

"Don't misunderstand," he looked sternly into Orihime's eyes, "I'm only doing this to get rid of your annoying morning antics," and then turned his head away to look forward.

She bit her bottom lip in silence, not yet knowing what he was planning to do.

Her breathing hitched when she suddenly felt gravity's very existence cease for a moment until Ulquiorra landed on a building a good distance away from her home just to be re-experiencing the sensation when he bounded off the roof. She wondered if he knew where he was going.

"Ulquiorra-kun," she looked up at him again, her eyes following the curve of his jawbone merging into his broad neck and the way he looked so focused and composed while he sonido'd his way through town. She kind of liked this angle. She was sure she was seeing a side of him that no one else had. Literally.

"Ulquiorra."

"H-huh?"

"When you refer to me, refer to me as Ulquiorra. Don't call for me as you would a human," he said dryly as he leapt from building to building. She bit the inside of her cheek in frustration.

"Well, _Ulquiorra_, you just passed by my school," she pointed.

He glanced down at her without a word, halted midair, and turned on his heel to her destination.

When Ulquiorra and Orihime had arrived, he gently lowered the woman's feet to the ground so she could stand up, completely oblivious to the shocked expressions and stares they were receiving from the crowd that walked past them. After all, humans couldn't comprehend sonido speed so the couple had just looked like they appeared out of nowhere.

Instead, they found themselves lost in each other's eyes for what seemed like an eternity. Orihime felt a wave of familiarity wash over her in contrast to Ulquiorra's bewilderment from what he felt when he looked at her. He started to wonder why she had always affected him this way. He could swear his hollow hole was aching in pain, but he restrained from touching it, knowing he would find no physical answer to his dilemma.

Orihime decided to break the eye contact first and looked down at her shoes, digging her sneaker's heel into the ground shyly.

"Thank you, Ulquiorra," she muttered before running away into the safety of the building.

Ulquiorra watched her long, auburn hair drift around her as she swiveled herself around to leave. He let out a low sigh and turned around to look at the bustling city around him.

He was going to do some sightseeing today.

* * *

Nnoitra was rudely woken up when he felt something nudge his arm and sharply dig into his ribs. He tried to sit up to blast the disturbance away with a cero when he found himself unable to move. Something was pinning him down. Fully adjusting his eyes to the light, he took in his surroundings from where he lay within his violet eyes.

Ironically, the boy who he had previously tried to kill had offered them shelter. Fortunately, Sado had a guestroom, but only one bed. Nel had offered to sleep on the couch in the living room and Nnoitra, being the selfish bastard like he was, didn't care.

_Nel_.

Nnoitra looked down at the spot to where he felt the commotion and almost exploded in sheer mortification. There in his right arm nestled a green haired girl, her body was flush against his side and her arms wrapped around his lean torso, her legs tangled with his. How long she had been like this, he didn't know, but he morbidly found himself enjoying the pressure of foreign skin against him. Nel nuzzled her head into the crook of his arm in her sleep, her lips brushing against his body. Though he was wearing a shirt, he found himself sensitive to her touch and shuddered. He closed his eyes. How she ended up pressed against him now, her fingers loosely curled into his shirt, was beyond him.

Honestly, he did hate the girl. He reflected on how she used to boss him around like some stuck up bitch and play around with him when he would challenge her to the death.

"_You are not worthy to be killed."_

She always followed him. She told him she watched over him because he was weak.

Nnoitra shut his eyes tighter, hatred seeping into his cold heart once more as he reminded himself of her words.

But she had changed. Nel's eyes had grown kinder. Before, her eyes had always looked so sad. So pitiful. He wanted to wipe that expression away so he had discarded her. But he had come to realize that that was exactly what he wanted. Not for her to leave, but her sadness. He had hurt her and she was still able to call out to him. He felt frustrated.

She had come to smile more and he couldn't help but feel like he wanted to keep that smile to himself. He wanted to be her only puppet master. The only one to pull her strings.

_Now that she could smile, did that make her weaker_?

Even so, he wanted her to depend on him. He wanted to be her manipulator.

He had seduced many beautiful Arrancar women. Waking up beside them after a night of ravishing night after night, girl after girl; he had always thought his life was complete. There was nothing of bare skin that he hadn't explored, no taste of women's flesh he hadn't taste, no body he had not conquered. What would make Nel any different from those whores?

_Despair._

He sat up and rolled over to be on top of Nel, his arms propping him up on either side of her head. He watched Nel's eyes flutter open, large, ochre eyes gazing at him, her eyes glazed over in disorientation, and her lips pursed into a tight line. His eyes traced the locks of her sea foam-colored hair, admiring how they seemed to wash against the covers, curling in waves and framing her pale face. All motivation to hurt her vanished.

He lowered his forehead onto the bed above the nook of her shoulder, his cheek pressing against hers. His ebony hair mixed with azure.

"I'm sorry, Nelliel."

The next thing Nel felt was the very lack of the pressure of his body against hers, his warmth gone along with his heart. The area beside her on the bed that was previously occupied was immediately growing cold. She didn't like this feeling at all. The feeling of losing her sight on him.

Was it because he was weak?

No… Nnoitra Gilga is the strongest man she had every encountered. He faced Kenpachi Zaraki to his death, disobeyed Aizen's orders to stay back, and he used to constantly challenge her countless times to prove himself.

He was very brave. So brave, she was afraid he would slip up in his confidence and she would lose him.

Just like now.

Nnoitra was about to step outside and past the front door when he felt strong arms snake around his torso from behind. Delicate fingers weaved their way through his arms and onto his chest, fisting the fabric of his shirt. He felt her cheek press onto his back and something different. He felt tears soaking through his shirt.

Suddenly, he felt one more tug from Nel as she spun him around, jerk the collar of his shirt downwards, and press her full lips against his thin lips. He was shocked beyond belief, his eyes widening in surprise as he slowly comprehended what was going on. He felt like he should run away, but her other hand had clamped down hard forcibly on his wrist, causing him to hesitate.

Her lips felt tender and soft, but sure. Her smell was overwhelming, washing over him in silent pleasure. She smelled sweat, like apricots and, surely, if moonlight had a scent he would immediately be reminded of her.

Nnoitra took a quiet deep breath to take her all in and leaned in to reciprocate her feelings and she sighed into his lips in response. His arms slowly lowered and then roughly wound around her waist, closing any gap between the two. Aware that her large breasts were pressing against him, Nel licked his bottom lip causing Nnoitra to part his lips slightly and sigh against hers. Using this opportunity, Nel deepened the kiss; tongues slid against each other tasting passion and years of frustration. Multitasking, he gently guided her backwards until they fell on the couch decorating the living room, leaving the front door wide open.

Pulling back from the kiss first, Nnoitra looked down at her bronze eyes. Humiliation and regret was about to consume him when suddenly, Nel gave him the largest and purest smile he had ever seen her wear. Nnoitra felt as if the wind was knocked out of him, his eyes widening in surprise.

Having momentarily distracted Nnoitra, Nel propped her upper body up on her eyes and leaned in to close the gap between their lips. The gap between Nnoitra and her once and for all.

…

Meanwhile, Sado lay tense in his bed with wide eyes, the sheets drawn over his head, and tried to ignore the erotic sounds he was hearing from outside his room. He was sweating profusely with awkwardness and doing his best not to imagine what was going on.

He was starting to wonder if he should be regretting his decision to let those two stay.

* * *

Ulquiorra strolled around the city, his feet tapping against the pavement of the sidewalk. He had to ignore plenty of groups of girls that would point at him and giggle like as if he didn't see them.

_Trash_, he sneered to himself not knowing that their behavior was, ironically, a rude compliment in the World of Living.

"Young man, over here! Hey!" he heard an old man call him over.

Ulquiorra kept walking. He was no 'man', therefore he could not be labeled as such.

"You're missing a great chance to win yourself a girl's heart, young man!" the old man persisted.

_Heart_?

He sighed and paused in front of the old man who was sitting on the ground and examined him. Judging by his clothes and the many discarded, empty bottles of alcohol that bordered him, the man was definitely trash.

"Oh good, oh good. I thought you couldn't hear me," the man bellowed to himself like he made the greatest joke in the world. Ulquiorra glowered at him.

"Hmm," the man scanned him, nodding his head as he looked at him from head to toe repeatedly. Ulquiorra resisted the urge to still his head by cutting it off, "you're definitely the one."

"Get to the point," Ulquiorra responded coldly. He didn't have anything else to do, but he would rather not be here talking to some human.

"Young man, do you have a girlfriend?"

Ulquiorra stared back, unblinking. The man scratched the back of his head.

"Well, truth is, my wife kicked me out of the house for good when I told her I bought her these tickets to go to this really nice restaurant called Ichibon. See, these tickets were super expensive and I would hate to see them go to waste," he fished the tickets out of his pocket and showed them to Ulquiorra," she got mad at me for spending my life savings to take her out on a nice date," he shook his head and sighed. Ulquiorra felt a twinge of pity, but ignored it, "I'll be willing to sell them to you for 25,000 yen only!"

The onna had been giving him some money to spend during his stay, but he had no reason to go shopping. Surely, the woman would find something to do with these tickets.

Ulquiorra reached into his pocket and withdrew a wad of cash from his pocket and the few coins he had found embedded in the sofa and exchanged with the man not caring how much he had giving him. Judging by the expression of the man though, it must have been a lot.

"Thank you!" he waved after the young, emo boy who had already begun to walk away, tickets in hand.

"And good luck, young man."

…

With that mess over with, Ulquiorra was back to sauntering around the urban city. He examined the humans in their natural habitat. Laughing, talking, yelling; humans were such noisy things. Pitiful things work so hard to just live a short life.

Hands in his pockets, he observed the many colorful advertisements and the stores they decorated.

"Oy, Ulquiorra!"

Ulquiorra felt a vein twitch at his temples.

"Grimmjow," he looked up just in time to see the blue-haired delinquent block the rays of the sun from his vision. He sighed audibly.

"I've been looking all over you!" Grimmjow paused and then continued with a grumble, "I mean while I was walking around town…"

"You could have just called me with the phone Soul Society has given to us for emergencies."

"Ah, yeah 'bout that. Got into a fight with Kurosaki and got the phone smashed up in my pocket," he bellowed, laughing like he was proud of himself.

"You're staying with Kurosaki Ichigo? How repulsive," Ulquiorra stepped aside and past him, continuing to walk to his undetermined destination.

"Tch," Grimmjow felt disgust filling him, "it's not like we're close or anything!" He took big steps to catch up to Ulquiorra and walked beside him, "I'm just stayin' there to sleep an' shower an' stuff. I'm outside when I'm not doin' those things!"

"I don't understand why you're so flustered. It's quite annoying," Ulquiorra responded coolly. He really hoped the guy wouldn't be following him around the whole day.

"Tch!" he repeated.

They continued to walk around the city together silently, an amusing duo of tattoos and threatening physical stature.

"Say… How do you think Kurosaki got rid of Aizen?"

"Don't ask me useless questions I cannot answer. You live with the boy."

"I'm tellin' ya I don't stay there longer than the time I need to!" he yelled. Grimmjow simmered down enough to get to his point, "I mean, Aizen couldn't have been put in jail that easily. Shinigami are a bunch a idiots to just put him in jail and not think he has something else up his sleeve."

Ulquiorra took a moment to think about it as he walked. Grimmjow was right. As far as he knew, Sousuke Aizen was brilliant enough to arrange Kurosaki Ichigo's every life event. He would have surely calculated a temporary defeat into his scenarios…only to lead to a more destructive plan. Ulquiorra didn't know whether this would be a good or bad thing for the remaining Espadas.

"I think it would be best that we ask Kurosaki Ichigo ourselves."

* * *

Orihime sighed, tapping her pencil against her cheek and furrowing her brows in concentration. She had been having a hard time focusing in class after this morning's events. Her thoughts drifted off to Ulquiorra again. She admired those strong arms that seemed to mold right into the curves of her body and the way his green eyes seemed to soften when she smiled at him. Tendrils of his loose hair flowing with the wind and grazing against his broad shoulders…

And now that she had caught herself dreaming about him, was something wrong with her?

Orihime pinched her cheeks hoping to distract herself when she started to feel blood rushing to her ears. But instead, the slight pain of the pinch reminded her of something else.

Last night, he had dozed off on the couch while they stayed up watching a romance/drama movie nicknamed "Koizora"…

_Ulquiorra_.

…

"Ulquiorra!"

The ebony haired boy reeled his head forward, realizing he had fallen asleep while sitting. They were currently watching some movie about trash meeting trash and then falling in love with mentioned trash and then the tras—

"You promised you would watch the movie with me, Ulquiorra," she pouted.

"I recall I did no such thing, onna," he glared at her.

"You did! You said 'I swear to do anything you wish for, onna, if you manage to make me smile'," she repeated in a mock low voice.

"And you had failed."

"I so did not! I made you smile! Do you want me to take the picture out again?" she threatened.

"Tickling does not count, but if it will make you stop whining, I will endure this torture."

Orihime grimaced at the insult he threw at the beautiful movie, but she shrugged it off, feeling satisfied he would try to watch the movie now.

Since Orihime's apartment was made to only house one person, there was only a small couch and Orihime and Ulquiorra had to share it whenever they wanted to watch TV. She felt Ulquiorra twitch next to her and looked over to see that he had fallen asleep on the arm of the couch again. She sighed in irritation, but had given up on trying to make him do her bidding for once.

She lifted her hand towards him and let a lone finger brush away his hair from his face. She relished in feeling the smoothness of his jawline and realized that's what she seemed to fancy most about him. Her finger traced the curve of his chin and then upward towards his eye, following the path of his tear marks. His eyes flickered, but did not open. She was sure he had fallen asleep this time, so she continued her actions, not questioning her behavior.

When her slender finger reached his eye, she moved onto his forehead and brushed away his bangs with her hand. Ulquiorra was startling beautiful this way. His lips were slightly parted, his breathing shallow and delicate. She smiled. The sensation was overwhelming, she could almost cry, but she didn't know why she felt this way. She felt overcome with emotions.

Was it because she had finally found someone she could take care of?

Someone who needed her? Depended on her and didn't run off?

That's right. Ulquiorra wouldn't run off. Even she knew that he would return.

Of course the Cuatro Espada was awake. In fact, his five senses were heightened ten-fold and he found pleasure in Orihime's touch. It felt very foreign to him. It was as though the fingers that were touching him now were not from the same hand that slapped him five years ago. They held a different kind of passion, burning and seeping into the pores of his cheeks. He felt the burning need to touch her, wondering if she would feel what he was currently feeling.

Orihime got up and retrieved a blanket from her room and wrapped it snugly around Ulquiorra. She looked down on him once more, but startled herself when she saw a water droplet drop onto the blanket near Ulquiorra's knees. She touched her cheeks tenderly and examined her hand and was stunned to find she was crying.

Tears were now pouring unrestrained from her grey eyes so she turned away and went to her room for the night after turning the TV off.

…

Later that afternoon, Orihime had returned home in time to witness the event of Ulquiorra showering. It made her feel estranged to the fact that a grown man was naked in her own home, wet and glossy in the same shower she was doing the same ritual in not long ago. She pondered if she were the only one to hear him doing something so...normal.

She placed her books on the table, her fingers tingling with curiosity and eyes bright with mischievousness. He definitely owed her for ruining her movie night.

Running her fingers through her chestnut hair and clearing her throat, she tip-toed quietly to the bathroom door and tested the knob to see if it were locked and, to her delight, it wasn't. Subtly turning the handle and pushing the door open, steam rushed out of the small bathroom, revealing a shower complete with tub enclosed within an obscured glass wall.

She shuddered visibly as she watched the silhouette the shape of a man move around in the shower, anxiety and adrenaline rushing through her as her fingers reached out towards the glass door.

Suddenly, the door slid open with a loud crash and more steam flooded out from the shower creating a humid atmosphere. Ulquiorra was definitely not pleased; gorgeously sculpted and hot, but not pleased. His groin area was covered by a small towel. Orihime immediately smacked her hands onto her eyes, covering them as blood rushed into her face.

Without removing his eyes from the cowering girl, Ulquiorra shut the shower off and stepped out, and brushed past her. Orihime peeked through her eyes at him as he turned the sink on and grabbed his toothbrush and applied paste.

"Aren't you mad at me?"

No response. The only sound that emitted from his mouth was the scrubbing of bristles against his teeth.

Orihime bit her cheek. She didn't really know what she was planning to do once she opened the shower door. Startle him? She should have known better. Maybe she was going to take pictures? _Wow, that sounds nasty_.

The caramel-headed girl was startled out of her thoughts when she heard Ulquiorra tap his toothbrush on the sink twice while he dried his mouth, and place it back in the cup. His gaze shifted to her without moving his head and Orihime averted her eye. She was about to step away and out of the bathroom when Ulquiorra abruptly turned around and pinned her against the moist wall of her small bathroom, her vision obscured by his bare chest. She felt her shirt sticking to the damp barrier, chilling her spine. She glanced down at his towel-clad thighs and let out a small squeak remembering he was nude under the small cloth. And it was definitely close to her. Was it slowly getting closer or was she imagining things?

Orihime mustered up the courage and tilted her head up to look at him. She almost instantly regretted locking onto his eyes because she found herself captivated by the emotion she saw in those green orbs. It was irrefutably _lust_.

Ulquiorra leaned his head downward, his eyes drooping erotically with his forearms pushing on the wall and supporting him. He quietly breathed in her scent and kissed her neck from her jawline and down to where his first love bite was fading. Possessively, he grabbed her by the shoulders, anchoring her down and removing any thoughts of escape from her as he pressed his lips against her collarbone.

Orihime was shocked beyond comprehension and lacked the strength to react which gave Ulquiorra time for him to leave not just one mark, but three. She gasped loudly as he teased her, unable to suppress the tingling his sensation his lips transferred into her. Pleasure washed through her, numbing her mind and making her legs feel like jello. Suddenly, she felt the area between her legs heat unbearably and she arched her back into Ulquiorra body. Orihime found enough strength to move her arms and entangle her fingers into the collar of his shirt as his tongue ravished her skin.

"Ul—"

Sucking longer than the others on the third sport, he released his claw-like grip on her and licked her bruises as a final seal that she was his. He walked out of the bathroom satisfied, leaving her leaning flaccidly on her bathroom wall. She slid down onto the damp floor and dug the heel of her palms into her eyes.

Did she just find pleasure in that? She felt absolutely ashamed of herself for succumbing so easily to his touch when she felt so strongly about another boy.

Orihime definitely needed something to cool her down.

…

When the two arrived at an ice cream vendor, Orihime paid for two cake cones of chocolate ice cream. It was an incredibly hot and humid afternoon, the ice cream immediately started to melt right as it was freed from the cooler. While Orihime's hair stuck to her sweaty face, Ulquiorra remained unaffected. Ulquiorra watched with disgust as the dessert trickled from the swirling tip onto Orihime's hands and making a mess.

"Here you go, Ulquiorra! I know you don't like chocolate, but I promise you chocolate-flavored ice cream is a totally different case!" Orihime shoved the ice cream insistently in Ulquiorra's direction while she fished for change in her purse. Ulquiorra took the puddle of ice cream without enthusiasm or curiosity.

Orihime gazed at Ulquiorra with bright, onyx eyes, searching for a sign of reaction when Ulquiorra took a bite from the tip, but he remained stoic. She pouted with disappointment wondering how he wouldn't at least show some sign of relief from something so cool on a hot day.

"Lets go sit on that bench over there. It feels like the Sun is sucking the energy from me!" Orihime complained.

When they sat down, Orihime noticed Ulquiorra continued to bite on his ice cream silently rather than licking.

"No, Ulquiorra! You have to savor the flavor by using your tongue so you can get a whole bunch of ice cream straight on your taste buds… Like this!"

She demonstrated by sticking her tongue out in full and slowly running her tongue against the length of the ice cream and repeating the motion. Ulquiorra watched silently a bored expression obvious on his face, but little did she know that his abdomen started to feel as hot as the weather and Ulquiorra had to grit his teeth to control his body's reactions and his impure imagination. He shoved the rest of his cone into his mouth in one bite causing Orihime to stop her actions and look at him in disapproval.

Unfortunately, Orihime went right back to unconsciously teasing him more. His control wavered tenfold when he watched Orihime pucker her lips and place it on her ice cream like as if she was kissing it. He shifted his legs uncomfortably.

"Onna, what are you doing?" Ulquiorra couldn't help but ask. He felt like the girl was getting under his skin. _Was it about the bathroom scene?_ He wondered. What it would be like if he were the ice cream…those creamy, sweet lips on his… Yes, he definitely deserved this torture.

Orihime laughed. "I like to suck on my ice cream like this. It's like I'm sucking ice cream through a straw except I'm not!" And then Ulquiorra's mind flooded with dirty thoughts. Again, he mused on what it would be like if some part of him were the ice cream… He twitched visibly to rid himself of the woman's corruption.

"Stop playing with your food or I'll shove it down your throat."

"Mmm… _fine_," she moaned unnaturally, making Ulquiorra's eye twitch. _Why does this woman have to behave like so? _But Ulquiorra felt instant regret for reprimanding her for the wrong thing when Orihime went back to taking long, slow licks at her ice cream. Now that it was melting onto her hands, she would lick the droplets from her skin and run her tongue from there to the tip again.

"I wonder if I could even have this shoved down my throat... Would it fit?" Orihime opened her mouth wide and prepared to enclose the treat between her smooth, wet lips.

Ulquiorra smacked the ice cream out of her hand. It landed on the hot pavement, boiling the ice cream instantly into a sticky, brown liquid which seeped out of the cone and pooled all over the ground.

"Aww, Ulquiorra! What did you do that for? I wasn't playing with my food!"

Ulquiorra sighed aloud to Orihime's surprise. She had never heard him audibly complain before. She wiped her sticky fingers under the hem of her skin and licked her lips in case there were some crumbs or bits of ice cream.

"Onna," he grabbed her attention immediately and she snapped her head to look into forest-green eyes. He retrieved something within his pocket and withdrew two crispy tickets. Orihime gasped upon noticing what they were for. "I'm sure you'll find some use for this."

She took the tickets and read every word on it. It was for tomorrow. She danced and cried and laughed all in her head of course. Ulquiorra only saw that she was pinching the two tickets in her hands with wide steel eyes like as if she was trying to break them. Ulquiorra couldn't help but have the crease of his brow deepen.

"Are you planning to give those to Kurosaki?"

Orihime gasped in sheer mortification.

"How can you say that? You got me these tickets. We're definitely going, Ulquiorra! I heard the food there is great and boy do I need a good feast after all these exams from school. Oh wow!" she exclaimed as she reread the ticket, "it comes with food!"

Before Ulquiorra could realize it, Orihime had closed the small barrier that kept them from looking like a couple and held him in a tight grip, her arms curled under his and her fingers splayed against his back. She sighed against his neck in blissful happiness.

Ulquiorra was in disbelief that he had managed to make the woman this happy to have her think there was nothing to fear from touching the Espada. Let alone hug him in an intimate way. He felt an overwhelming desire to pull away from her and create that barrier between them again, but Orihime held on to him with such a grip that he was afraid she would shatter without his support. He found himself fascinated by how her head was tucked underneath his, auburn hair flowing around him like fire and raised a hand to twirl a strand of red around his pinky.

He was sure this fire would incapacitate him.

* * *

**Okay, okay. NnoiNel is done for now. I really should just write a separate story for them, but the point of this fanfic was to explore all the possibilities of what would happen if Ichigo wasn't so perfectly on time. Don't worry though, you will see how significant they will be later on~ I hope that for those of you who are skeptical about NnoiNel that I got you to reconsider! Nnoitra's last moments to me were really touching. -cry-  
**

**References I used**** (in order of appearance):**

_**Cruising For Love**_** by StrawberryMerry  
**_**Muse**_** by princess kitty1  
**_**Koizora**_**: ****Setsunai Koi Monogatari**

**Leave some feedback please! I would really appreciate it. And it'd help me a lot~**


	6. His Heart

**Sorry GrimmIchi shippers, but this is NOT a fanfic for them. Truthfully, I just didn't know where else to put Grimmjow~ Recall that Grimmjow said he only stays at his house to eat, sleep, and shower!**

**A full chapter dedicated to UlquiHime! It's pretty long, but I think you guys will like it~ Enjoy!**

* * *

It was a relatively humid Friday morning. Light rays bounced off of rooftops and gravel casting a mirage that danced tauntingly on the hot surface. The wind played with auburn and ebony locks, whipping the free strands against exposed skin and tickling sensitive areas.

Orihime felt like she should wake up late on purpose from now on. She was starting to love this treatment.

The gray-eyed girl looked up at her dark prince and smiled brightly. Ulquiorra glanced down at the girl while he sonido'd her to school and felt his hollow hole ache painfully when he saw not only the glow of her face, but her radiant smile. He could have sworn a mirage was playing with his mind with the way Orihime was looking at him, but he didn't want to linger his gaze on her face for too long.

He felt her cheek press more firmly into his hard chest and her chest shift as she inhaled and exhaled slowly. He did his best to ignore the fact her left hand was starting to make its way to his sensitive hollow hole. Ulquiorra cringed as the pain in his chest intensified to an insatiable flame, pushing and pulling his desire to have her hand place firmly on it. Orihime's curious hand twitched in hesitation when she noticed Ulquiorra's eyes had hardened as he looked toward their destination.

It was amazing really.

Orihime was in awe about how their relationship had transformed within a few days.

Five years ago he was her captor and her caretaker. He had stripped her down to her soul with both his words and his hands. It was a frightening, yet exhilarating experience. She was just a young teenager full of naivety and bravery and now she was a grown woman with experience etched in the deep wrinkles of her forehead and the creases of her smile. She was a woman who was in the arms of the only person who had witnessed her true potential and brought out the most in her. There was nothing to hide from this Ulquiorra. Both body and soul.

Orihime realized, whether she wanted him to or not, he was the only one who truly saw her. Ichigo never saw past her smiles, her cheerful disposition, and the determination in her eyes. He had yet to witness the fury and passion she had placed on Ulquiorra's cheek, her fearful eyes decorated with tears, and even then, he had never looked at her the way Ulquiorra has, even if it was just for a moment. Ulquiorra made her feel like a woman and so much more within a few minutes.

_Oh, my. What's wrong with me?_ Orihime felt very flustered.

She felt all movement still and her lower body tilt towards the ground. Taking the cue, she placed her feet gracefully on the ground, her hands still placed on Ulquiorra's chest. She bit her lower lip and blushed furiously, still drowning in her thoughts.

Ulquiorra placed his hands on hers, causing her to snap her head up in shock and look into his emerald eyes. Realizing a bit too late, she removed her hands from his chest, forcefully eliminating the wonderful pressure Ulquiorra's hands had put on hers and stepped back giggling awkwardly and loudly.

"Ah, well I guess I'll be going to class!" she laughed cheerfully, rubbing a hand behind her head.

Ulquiorra watched her carefully as she spoke, wondering why she had been acting weird this morning, but instead of inquiring, he turned around swiftly and prepared to return to her home.

"Ul-Ulquiorra"

He paused in his step and tilted his head towards her without fully turning around.

"You don't have anything nice to wear for tonight right? We'll go shopping when I'm done with school so promise you'll be here in 7 hours!"

"I'll make no such promise, onna," Ulquiorra truly despised the thought of doing trivial routines such as shopping.

Instead of continuing to walk, he flashed away before Orihime could retort. Orihime puffed her cheeks up after him and balled both her fists at her sides like a child.

"Inoue-san?"

Orihime turned around abruptly and came face to face with the Quincy.

"Ishida-kun…," she murmured, a dazed look evident in her eyes. She wasn't looking quite at him. More like through him.

"Was that Ulquiorra Cifer just now?" Uryuu was genuinely concerned now. Ichigo had told him a few days ago that the Espada were in town so he had been afraid that Ulquiorra had intentions to harm Orihime after what he did to her in Hueco Mundo.

Orihime's attention snapped back to reality, her eyes now focusing into Uryuu's dark blue eyes. She immediately averted her gaze, knowing what was coming.

"Yes…," she whispered.

"Inoue-san, I know you're fully aware about what I'm about to say to y—"

"Yes, Ishida-kun," she laughed half-heartedly, but her eyes were still cast towards the ground. She looked at him with the most fake smile she could muster.

"I am fully aware that you are concerned about my wellbeing, but Ulquiorra has actually been at my place for a while now and I'm doing perfec—"

"Y-your place?!" Uryuu sputtered. _Unbelievable_! He expected Ulquiorra would have decided to live in the streets and sleep on the rooftops of a random house due to his nihility complex, but actually staying at Orihime's place? He felt, a flame of jealousy licking at his heart, but he paid no attention to it. An overwhelming desire to protect her rose from the depths of his Quincy soul even though he knew that the Espada's powers had been reduced.

Orihime, having sensed something dangerous spark within Uryuu, parted her lips to calm him down, but was interrupted by a gruff voice that was heard behind her. Uryuu blinked twice at her and then shifted his gaze over her shoulder to the giant walking towards them.

Taking this moment as a distraction, Orihime skipped to meet Chad halfway, her hands tangled behind her back innocently.

"Good morning, Sado-kun! It seems we're all kinda late to school, huh?"

"Well, for your information, my clothes were still wet!" Uryuu stammered his excuse while he walked up next to Orihime.

"Morning," Sado replied, his voice thick with exhaustion in just one word.

Orihime squinted her eyes up at him and peered behind his bangs. The man definitely had some dark circles beneath his eyes.

"What's wrong, Sado-kun? It's like as if you had a rough night!" She giggled and wiggled her eyebrows. Sado sighed.

"Nel and Nnoitra are staying at my place."

"WHAT?!" Orihime and Uryuu shouted at the same time.

"Boy, now I know why you're tired!" Uryuu nodded in agreement with Orihime.

"It's not just that," Sado, placed a palm on his forehead like he had a headache, "I think they're dating and the sounds they make… at night are really… And then I have to change the sheets every now and then…" he shuddered visibly.

Sado was speaking with fragmented sentences, but it was enough to totally gross out Orihime and Uryuu.

"Eww…" was all she could say, wrinkling her nose up in immaturity.

Uryuu never saw Nnoitra in person, but based on the descriptions he received from his friends' stories, he was quite an ugly guy.

"Isn't he kinda… Ugly, tall, and skinny…?" suddenly, Uryuu's face became blank with horror, his mouth pretty much dropped to the floor, "and isn't Nel a _baby_?"

"It's complicated," Sado sighed. Uryuu was curious to know and yet really disgusted with what he already _did_ know. Orihime just giggled silently, not wanting to spoil to him Nel's true form.

Then, Orihime startled the two boys by shoving them towards the door with effort, their feet causing friction upon the pavement.

"Come on! We've got class and we're already super late. Oooh, I'll be so embarrassed if my professor calls me out again!"

With a final heave, she pushed the boys through the door and walked behind them as they resumed an irrelevant conversation.

Admittedly, Orihime just wanted to get school over with so she could be with Ulquiorra again.

* * *

The Cuatro Espada wandered around a large building, his eyes scanning the landscape around him. _According to the files left in Las Noches, the shinigami's store should be around…here._

He found himself standing in front of a small, dilapidated building, a sign decorating the roof with the words "Urahara Soten". Placing one foot in front of the other, he knocked on the door politely, minding the human etiquette necessary to get what he wanted in this world.

The old door rattled to the side with quite difficulty and Ulquiorra found himself having to look up at the blond man standing in front of him, his face partially shaded by a green-striped hat and a fan.

"Ulquiorra-san! I've been waiting for you. Come in, come in!" Urahara Kisuke ushered him in.

Ulquiorra stepped in silently, brushing past the shop owner and upon entering the shop, and was immediately greeted by someone else.

"Ulquiorra! What brings ya 'ere?" Grimmjow bellowed at him. The spiky-haired man sat on the floor next to the dinner table, his mouth framed by bits of rice and condiments. He grinned widely at him, his canines gleaming brightly, "Yuzu told me they sell appetizers here for only 500 yen!"

Ulquiorra analyzed the blue-haired delinquent. It seemed he was wearing a tight, white shirt that seemed plenty of sizes too small for him and basketball shorts and his head was wrapped in bandages probably as a result from a brawl with the shinigami. _Were those Kurosaki Ichigo's clothes_? He really didn't want to know.

"You look like an idiot," he glared back, but sat across the table from him nonetheless.

Kisuke walked around Ulquiorra and seated himself at an unoccupied side and flipped his fan open again to cover his mouth as he talked.

"I'm going to assume you're here to ask me about what happened to Aizen during his last moments of freedom?"

Ulquiorra nodded once, shoved his pale hands into his pockets, and leaned back against the wall.

"Oh yeah that reminds me. I asked Kurosaki about how he defeated Aizen. Said he used some Final Getsuga move that would eventually make him lose his powers again or somethin'," Grimmjow shrugged, "How he got his powers back is beyond me, but I don't really care. Gives me more motivation to beat the guy up for being so damn over-powered."

"Although, that's not really how he defeated him."

Kisuke had both green and blue eyes trained on him now in interest. He laid his fan aside as he explained.

"Kurosaki-kun had used his Final Getsuga to hinder Aizen, thus causing the Hougyoku to question its ownership. Right now, it's hibernating within his body under a seal I had created at the last moment."

"So, the Hougyoku is still embedded in him." Ulquiorra reconfirmed.

The suspicious man nodded solemnly.

"If I remember correctly," Kisuke continued, "the Hougyoku had not yet reached its full potential when I arrived to see the seal I placed on him start to activate. I arrived a few minutes after Kurosaki-kun had released his Final Getsuga, so I can't determine whether that attack had hindered Aizen's goals. We must also take into consideration that the Hougyoku could be well aware of Aizen's plans and be playing along with him, faking its hibernation."

Hibernation. So if that were the case, Aizen is currently waiting. But for what? Was he waiting for a cue as he watched time pass through his prison window? Ulquiorra could only wait to find out. When the moment comes, he would learn what to do, but for now Ulquiorra didn't know if Aizen needed him.

Ulquiorra stood up and started walking towards the door.

"'ey, where ya going?!" Grimmjow called after him.

"I have received the answers I have been searching for these past few years. My presence is no longer necessary here." And he flashed away.

Kisuke just shook his head after him and got up to do some tinkering around in his shop, leaving Grimmjow to pick at the rice in his bowl.

"Tch."

* * *

Not much to Orihime's surprise, from the glass automatic doors of her building, she could see the silhouette of a dark and lonely figure standing outside. She checked the clock stationed at the lobby as she passed by.

2:00 PM. _Sharp... Boy would I love to have a boyfriend who is never late._

Skipping through the doors, she hopped to Ulquiorra feeling a bit too giddy about rendezvousing with the Espada than she should be.

Within ten feet of Ulquiorra, she somehow tripped on air and was sent on a nose dive towards the ground. She squeaked and closed her eyes, bracing for the impact of the fall and the scraping of gravel against her skin, but instead felt the wind knock out of her by a softer force. She opened a squinted eye and peered up at Ulquiorra who had one arm tucked underneath her breasts.

"Must you act so pathetically, onna?" he said coldly, his gaze not leaving hers, "maybe I shouldn't be escorting you to school anymore since it seems you have forgotten how to walk."

At that moment, her joyful persona cracked and she felt irritated. _It was supposed to be a romantic moment (or at least cute), but he ruined it_!

With Ulquiorra's aid, Orihime stood on her own two feet again. She patted her shirt and pants free of wrinkles or dirt before she glared menacingly at Ulquiorra.

Suddenly, she slapped her hands on either side of his cheeks and shook his head forcefully with the help of her palms.

"It's O-ri-hi-me!" she huffed, "It's about time you call me by my first name! You live in my house and I feed you and give you clothes so repeat after me! Ori. Hime!"

Ulquiorra tried to speak, but his lips were smothered together by her hands, making him look like a puffer fish. He ended up saying something incoherent instead so he removed the girl's hands from his face with his own.

"I'll deem you with a name I feel is suitable for you and that is 'woman'," he stared back at her defiantly, "You should feel grateful towards me for not calling you the name I deem appropriate for the human race which is 'trash'."

Just then the two heard a group of girls giggle as they walked past them. Orihime turned to see them pointing at their holding hands and obviously whispering about them. The chestnut-haired girl immediately withdrew her hands from Ulquiorra's and brushed passed him making sure to bump into his shoulder rudely. She definitely didn't feel like taking crap from him today.

All Ulquiorra saw from his perspective was the way her face had suddenly turned crimson as she passed by and her attitude had, once again, changed. He sighed and took large strides to catch up with her.

"Where do you plan to go shopping, onna?"

Orihime responded him with a cold shoulder, refusing to look at him and not allowing to let him walk beside her even though he would easily overcome the distance with a single step.

"Onna," he said more firmly.

Silence.

"_Onna_," he hissed.

Nothing.

"Ori…hime," he sighed the last syllable.

Orihime felt her face grow hotter, but her pride kept her from looking at him. She then realized how she could never get Ichigo to call her by her first name like the way she had forced Ulquiorra to do. _Not in five years!_ she cried internally.

"We're going to the mall," she managed to mutter.

"I don't understand why we have to go there to prepare for a dinner."

"It's a really, really nice place. Only rich people can afford it! I guess it's the kind of place you go to for important events," Orihime explained vaguely, making sure to avoid the topics of proposals, marriages, and anniversaries. She didn't feel comfortable about talking about those things with the Arrancar.

"Where do you get all these funds to support, not only yourself, but another?" Ulquiorra inquired. Truthfully, this question had been lingering on his mind since he arrived, but he didn't have a chance to ask her.

"It's quite funny actually," she giggled and slowed her rampaging pace down. Ulquiorra could have sworn he heard shame in her voice as she spoke, "You know how my Sōten Kisshun can pretty much reject everything as long as I have the emotional stability for it?"

"Of course, it is the very reason I had found you suitable for Aizen's plans."

Orihime paused in her step for a split second and then resumed. He was the one that suggested her to Aizen?_ Oh that's right… Ulquiorra must have reported to him what I did to save Sado-kun that day._

"Anyways," she continued, "not only do I receive money from the government since I have no family, but I earned myself some scholarships too! And… I kinda used my Sōten Kisshun to heal people for money…," she laughed guiltily, "Though I'm still debating if I should use it to cure cancer… Can you believe how many people would come after me? I definitely do not like being kidnapped." she frowned.

Ulquiorra took a moment to think about her question and his frowned deepened. He knew humans had incurable diseases, but with Orihime being the only one of her kind, her powers could backfire on her. Humans could also be savage animals when it comes to what they want.

"I believe," he chose his words carefully, his gaze set forward, "you should do whichever you want. I'll make sure no harm comes your way."

Orihime completely stopped this time and turned to look at Ulquiorra with wide, gray eyes. Ulquiorra watched as her cheeks bloomed a tint of pink. He wondered if she should be worried that her face kept turning into different colors at some times. He refrained from wanting to feel the warmth of her glowing face, but instead he shoved his hands deeper into his pockets and continued walking.

Orihime giggled behind him as she walked closer to him and tugged on his sleeve which was rolled up halfway to his elbow. Ulquiorra didn't turn to her or slow down his pace, but Orihime didn't let go.

"Ulquiorra, I wonder if you realize how corny you can be sometimes," she laughed brightly.

"Perhaps you've forgotten that every action I make is for my own intentions. Not yours," he frowned.

Although despite Ulquiorra's words, Orihime didn't falter. She felt like she understood him and even if his words were the truth, she felt satisfied with just that.

They continued to walk towards the mall as Orihime described and complained about her classes to Ulquiorra who was fully aware her fingers still fisted onto his sleeve.

...

"Uwaahh…," Orihime cooed in awe.

Ulquiorra turned his attention away from the table that sorted all different designs and colors of neck ties and walked to stand behind her. He peered over her shoulder and had to adjust his eyes to the blinding light reflected off the object he looked directly at.

"Isn't that such a beautiful ring, Ulquiorra?" she continued to mewl as she pointed to a ring encrusted with diamonds much too large for a finger.

"What are those for, onna?" he never researched for such useless things before arriving to the Living World.

Orihime mentally slapped herself on remembering that she had been trying to avoid this topic. She sighed in defeat.

"It's for… when you want to give your heart to someone," she explained vaguely, hoping that would be enough, but the word 'heart' had piqued his interest.

Ulquiorra had yet to understand what Orihime had meant by the 'heart' back in Hueco Mundo and he felt he was far from the answer. Though he remembered his motivation for coming to the Living World was to gain one.

"How foolish…," _so this is another physical form of the heart? Why must humans apply that word to everything symbolically_?

Orihime frowned. Although she didn't want to talk about it, she didn't want Ulquiorra to think lowly of the romantic tradition either.

"This is different though, I mean, from other symbols we use concerning the heart," she continued, "a man gives a woman this ring when he wants to be with her forever. Or vice versa."

She watched Ulquiorra's forest green eyes reflect light as he bent over and peered at a different ring in the display box at a different angle, his hands still in his pockets.

"Should I obtain one of these rings," he tilted his head to look into her dark gray orbs, "Orihime?"

Orihime blushed for like the umpteenth time wondering what that could have possibly meant.

"Oh no no, Ulquiorra!" she waved her hands hectically around and an awkward grin was plastered on her face, "You only get these when you're in love. Or when you're absolutely, entirely, positively _sure_ that you want to be with that man or woman for your entire lifespan!"

Ulquiorra meant if he should get one for himself since it seemed the ring was a symbol for the heart and he had yet to gain one, but he decided it would be best to gain his answers through experience instead.

There was that word again. _Love_. Ulquiorra already had great difficulty in understanding the heart, but even more complicated was a word like 'love'. Sometimes it was thrown around between friends, sometimes it was rushed at the end of every phone call between a child and their parent, and even more rarely, it was whispered between a man and woman at the peak of their moment. He understood that, lately, he had been gaining plenty of emotions he had trouble labeling, but he doubted love was one of them. Definitely lust.

Deciding that he should not take both the words 'heart' and 'love' lightly, he stood straight up again and was about to turn his attention back to the rack of neck ties when he swore he heard a baby call his name from a distance.

"Ulquiorra! Orihime-chan!" Nel called, flapping a hand high into the hand thus gaining not only their attention but the attention of every human in the department store. Nnoitra could be seen lurking quite a distance back from the running, teal-haired girl looking as hateful as ever.

"Orihime-chan!" Nel jumped over the last remaining feet the divided the girls and glomped the auburn-haired girl between her massive jugs, "I feel like it's been forever since I've seen you!"

"N-Nel-san!" Orihime stuttered against her neck. Though she had large breasts herself, she could never get used to Rangiku's hugs let alone Nel who was once a tiny baby. She guessed she had the right to say she watched Nel grow up?

"What brings ya here, Orihime-chan?"

"Ah, nothing really!" she giggled, "just buying Ulquiorra some nice clothes for our dinner tonight…"

Nel wiggled her eyebrows at her playfully, "I see, I see!"

Nel released Orihime from her choking hold and spun around to give Nnoitra the same treatment. He only scowled at her in response.

"Nnoitra and I don't have very many clothes since we stay with Sado-kun and Nnoitra is such a tall boy, I'd still be pretty surprised if I found clothes his size! I'm debating on just buying him a full length dress for his shirt," she teased.

Nnoitra yelled at her and placed a large hand on Nel's hair and squeezed her tiny head between his fingers. Nel complained, playing along with his torture, her hands pressed against her cheeks in faux distress.

_Huh_, Orihime mused, _they can be pretty cute together after all._

"Orihime-chan…," Nel whispered into her ear by leaning over and sneakily covering her face with her hand.

"Y-yes, Nel-cha— I mean, Nel-san?" She stuttered awkwardly, startled in the middle of her thoughts. She looked over her shoulder to see that Nnoitra had joined Ulquiorra at the neck-tie shelf and were somewhat talking to each other.

"I just want to remind you that Ulquiorra isn't exactly the same person you knew back in Hueco Mundo."

Orihime stepped back to look at her and blinked twice. Nel wiggled her eyebrows suggestively at her again.

"I mean, ever since he let you go at Las Noches, he's been quite…," she placed a finger on her lips as she searched for a word to complete her sentence.

"…naughty."

"W-what?!" Orihime shrieked. Nel slapped both her hands on Orihime's mouth and glanced both ways to make sure Nnoitra or Ulquiorra hadn't heard her distress.

The caramel-haired girl was quite worried now. _'What if I'm dealing with a player?'_ she fretted, _'that would totally explain his behavior!'_ She shifted her feet uncomfortably. Nel, reading her movements, shook her head and took her hands off of her mouth.

"No, I meant, ever since her saw _you_, he'd been glancing longer at the…well-endowed Arrancar servants of Las noches."

There was silence for about five seconds. Then Nel watched Orihime's mouth turn into a small, round 'o' in revelation. The human girl blushed profusedly.

So did that mean Ulquiorra had a crush on her ever since? Or maybe it was just lust. Orihime undeniably understood that she had a drop-dead-gorgeous body. She felt a little disappointed upon realizing that maybe Ulquiorra was just after her body.

If Orihime had puppy ears, they would have laid against her head in disappointment.

"Don't get me wrong, Orihime!" Nel waved her hands frantically around, "I mean, it's like as if you've awakened Ulquiorra's 'boy' side, you know what I mean? Five years and the guy had grown into a man! As far as I've known, he's never touched a girl…except _you_." She snickered as she pointed at the constellation of bites on her neck.

Orihime gasped loudly and slapped a hand loudly on her neck to cover the love bites, turning tomato-red in embarrassment.

"W-well what about you and Nnoitra-san then?" she sputtered defiantly, trying to steer the subject away from her.

Nel skipped a step forward, her breasts bouncing as she moved, and giggled.

"It's kinda wonderful. After all those years of frustration and pain, dominance and fighting, and watching each other…"

"That sounds kind of dark, Nel-cha— Nel-san," she blinked at her, "I mean, no offense, but… aren't you out of Nnoitra-san's league? He's like tall and nasty and mean! And he's got a creepy face!" She shuddered visibly remembering how he had called her "pet".

"Well!" Nel bit her lower lip, internally questioning herself why she found him attractive, "I think he's got nice hair, he's super strong, and whether its negative or positive, he cares about me, and it's really cute when he does something romantic for once like taking me here on a date!" she paused before she added, "and he's great in bed."

Orihime squealed feeling much too innocent to be imagining little Nel being sexually active with big, nasty Nnoitra. _Poor, Sado-kun_.

"Oh that reminds me Orihime-chan," Orihime saw her bronze eyes sparkle in excitement, "so what is this 'lingerie' I keep seeing in advertisements here in the Living World?"

_Meanwhile…_

Silence.

"So are you fucking her?"

"No."

Silence.

"You?"

"Yeah."

And the two men wordlessly agreed to search for their missing female companions who had left just a few seconds earlier.

…

"Ulquiorra! What are you doing?" Nnoitra hissed loudly after the dark-haired boy. He reached out a lanky arm and pulled Ulquiorra forcefully back behind a clothing rack.

"I'm trying to retrieve the girl so we will not be wasting time any longer here," he replied nonchalantly to his rhetorical question. Nnoitra shook his head and pointed at the small dressing room the two girls now occupied.

"_Listen_," he hissed again.

Ulquiorra could hear the girls giggling in the dressing stall and the shuffling of tight clothes being removed from voluptuous bodies. He instantly started feeling that familiar heat rising and he shifted his feet uncomfortably, but continued to peep at the closed door.

"Aww, Orihime-chan! You have such big boobies now!"

"Nel-san! Don't squeeze too ha— oh!"

"Oh try this one! This one!"

"Nel-san, how do you even have the money to pay for anything here?"

"I dunno, but every time Nnoitra and I just walk around in the human world, someone would give him their wallet and run away screaming from him. You humans are so funny!

Ulquiorra heard the shuffling of clothes being dressed on possibly nude bodies and took this chance to take the girl out forcefully and resume their business. To Nnoitra's dismay, he swiftly walked to the door and tried to turn the knob to enter, but it was proven more difficult when locked.

"Oh? Is that you, Ulquiorra?" Nel chirped from behind the door. He could hear Orihime squeak and stumble around in the stall clumsily.

Suddenly, the door slammed open and Nel dragged Ulquiorra in by the wrist and jumped out in exchange, shutting the door behind her. She snickered away from the scene as she drew closer to an annoyed Nnoitra with lingerie of choice in her hand.

Meanwhile, Ulquiorra found himself shoved up against the wall by Orihime's hands, one hand pushing his face into the wall and the other between his shoulder blades. He tried to tilt his head back to glare at her and complain, but she pressed even more firmly, rendering him mute.

"U-Ulquiorra, don't look," she said in an unnaturally high-pitched voice, "Promise me you won't look!"

Ulquiorra grumbled an inaudible response.

"Promise me!" she almost screamed. Ulquiorra nodded once.

Orihime untangled her fingers from his unruly hair, releasing the pressure that attached him to the wall. Ulquiorra started to hear her undress, the unzipping of cloth sounding awfully erotic at the moment. The small room forced the two bodies to brush each other with every move. The smell and heat radiating off each person made it even harder to breathe.

Though, Orihime must have lost her logic somewhere having Ulquiorra face a wall that upheld a long mirror parallel to the other wall. Not only that, but she could have at least kicked him out of the room first. If Ulquiorra decided to move one centimeter from his position, Orihime was sure to go berserk.

Tensely, he watched the image of Orihime's back through the mirror as she undressed from a scarlet shirt that did everything but cover her hips and the bare, slender back her hair gracefully framed. Her curves resembled that of a goddess, her legs long and shapely. Her rear was completely uncovered by the gown, a veil of lace framing her roundness. He almost dreaded what the front side of the gown would look like. Ulquiorra thought Arrancar women wore rather promiscuous outfits, but whatever Orihime was wearing just begged him to take her mercilessly. She definitely had too much freedom.

He grew tense, but continued to watch lecherously.

All it took was a fragile, pale hand to slip the strap of her gown from her creamy shoulder and Ulquiorra was forced to physically show a sign of discomfort from the gnawing heat twisting and licking ferociously at his groin. He shut his eyes, blocking out the image displaying in front of him, and clenched and unclenched his fists repeatedly in his pockets.

Meanwhile, as Orihime undressed, she mulled over the information Nel had given to her to distract herself from Ulquiorra's presence.

The innocent girl was almost sure he was only lusting after her. It was inevitable for the cold and empty Espada to want something that would fill the abyss that threatened to devour him. She thought about her feelings for Ichigo knowing she had been very faithful to him all these years and yet nothing had come between them. If anything, he had distanced himself further. Would it be bad if she decided to help Ulquiorra? Deep down, she felt that it would be okay to support this dark relationship if it were to help a friend, though she was fully aware that she would only do this for him only. Not even Uryuu.

Then what did Ulquiorra mean to her?

Orihime was in the process of stepping out of the gown, bending over as she lowered the garment down to step over it and her bare rear brushing against Ulquiorra's legs, when her right foot caught in the strap and she lost her balance. Instinctively, she placed a hand in front of her to push against the wall in front of her to keep her from falling, but she pushed too hard thus making her fall back onto Ulquiorra and causing him to slam face first into the mirror in front of him.

Ulquiorra impulsively spun around and grabbed her shoulders to steady her before she made even more of a mess, but as soon as he opened his eyes, he grew stiff. He mentally cursed himself.

In his hands was a girl, naked and hot to the touch, and looking up at him with wide, innocent eyes. In his peripheral vision, he could see taut pink nipples adjusting to the cold air it had become newly revealed to and her messy auburn hair flowing around her shoulders and his pale, bony hands. The heat of the moment was consuming him and he felt like he was suffocating. They stood in that position for a few seconds in awkwardness, not knowing what to do.

Who would have known the first person to see her in something so provocative would be Ulquiorra? _What to do...what to do..._

Orihime internally cursed Nel and gathered the strength to balance herself. She planned to resume redressing and just walk out wordlessly, hoping that Ulquiorra would silently agree that this moment had never happened.

When she bent over to pick up her clothes on the floor, her bare rear brushed against Ulquiorra's thigh, making him hiss quite loudly. She paused and tilted her head back to look at his enraged viridian eyes in surprise. She could barely make out a light swatch of pink painted on his pale, white cheeks. Losing her composure once more, her face turned entirely red as she felt something stiffen against her leg and the way she was positioned with Ulquiorra standing behind her made his expression grow even darker.

He twitched.

Ulquiorra sighed audibly and turned away to open the door to let himself out. Brushing past the females that stared with huge eyes at him upon seeing him exit the dressing room and the messy-haired, naked girl occupying it, he set forth on the path to wander around again.

Ulquiorra felt the knot of excitement slowly loosen to a string of anger. Anger at Kurosaki Ichigo, at Orihime, and himself. The woman had reduced him to a mere animal and she had the power to rule over him. She could manipulate him like a puppet and he would have no objection. He was the Cuatro Espada. As for Kurosaki, he didn't know why, but he felt an even stronger impulse to eradicate his existence. He knew that Ichigo had managed to ruin every moment with the woman and_ knew_ that it was no different for this situation.

Nothing had ever kept him from his desires. Though that was what made him even more irritated. He had every right and power to claim what he wanted, but the fact that he was lusting after_ her_ and the unknown reason why he couldn't make himself hurt her, confused him to the brink of sanity.

He felt a new emotion rise within him and he labeled it immediately.

_Hatred_.

* * *

"And now for the final touch!" Orihime sang to herself as she smeared on a coat of juicy peach lip gloss. She pursed her lips twice to even out the color and tilted her head to admire her lightly perfected face at different angles.

She spun around, her new violet cocktail dress billowing loosely and lightly near her thighs, as she faced Ulquiorra who had been standing behind her. She smiled brightly at him and then lowered her eyes, still grinning, to focus on fixing the neck tie he had failed to tie.

Ulquiorra looked down at the beautiful girl whose pink-tinted fingers were now brushing against the nape of his neck fearlessly. He watched her long lashes flutter below him as she blinked and her top lip curl into a genuine smile. Was this happiness? He was so sure he was witnessing the very emotion right under his chin. Tilting his head even lower, her accidentally saw her exposed cleavage her long V-neck dress had mercilessly exposed.

"Done!" she stepped back and clasped her hands behind her back and scanned him from head to toe, admiring her work of fixing him up.

Ulquiorra was wearing the average black trousers and dark gray button-down shirt any man would wear on a nice night out. Though, his tie seemed a bit out of place. Earlier, when Orihime finished redressing, she didn't have to look for him for long when she found him musing over the same tie station again. To her horror, he was staring at an ugly checkered, white and toxic green design with deep interest, but she felt obliged to buy it for him after the dressing room incident.

Orihime extended her arm and placed her hand gently on his cheek. She traced his tear marks with the tips of her fingers, her well-manicured nails tickling his skin. He flinched at her touch, but did not remove his hands from his slacks to remove it.

"You can be so handsome," she laughed, her eyes crinkling into two thin lines as she beamed at him.

His dark mouth thinned in annoyance, resembling that of an underscore as he stared at her.

Despite his objections, the woman had shamelessly decided to wear a curve-fitting, violet dress that hugged her deliciously thin waist and complimented her round breasts, which seemed to spill over the edge, and ending what seemed to be right under her hips. The neck of the dress was cut into a deep V, accentuating the shadows of her cleavage, teasing one's eyes to look further into the valley. Even worse was the back portion of her garment that was also cut in the same fashion as the front except it dipped even lower which would draw one's attention to the small dimple of her back just an inch away from the curve of her rear. It was really no different from the sheer cloth she was wearing at the mall.

He felt an arm tuck under his and pull him outside towards the cab stalling in front of her apartment complex.

…

Upon entering the five-star restaurant, Ichibon, they were immediately greeted by the sounds of silverware taping against chinaware, hushed, indistinct chatter amongst the customers who were eating, and the echoing of jazz that drifting from the grand piano on stage that occupied the back part of the large room.

The ceiling was high and entricately designed, the lighting low and soft; crystal chandeliers of massive weight hung precariously low and scattered dim beams of light that would occasionally land on the rows of roses that adorned the walls and counters that surrounded the perimeter of the restaurant. The smell of exotic food drifted in the air, mixing with the sounds of glass knocking against the necks of wine bottles and the fizzing of champagne.

"Woooooooohaaaahahaaha!" Orihime ended up laughing in her delight much to Ulquiorra's confusion.

The woman had been clinging onto his arm during the entire duration of his first car ride and was still latched onto him, though he had paid no mind to it thinking he must be giving her some sort of emotional and physical support. The girl had proven herself to have the inability to stand on her own two feet at some times.

The two were ushered to their seat by a waiter dressed in a fancy tuxedo. Kindly, he asked to see Orihime's tickets. She fished into her purse to retrieve the paper and handed it to him.

"Oh wow, this is great!" the man said as he looked at her tickets, "I see you have booked yourself for a night and day at our hotel. I hope you will enjoy your stay." He smiled.

Orihime was very puzzled.

"Hotel? Oh, I'm sorry, I think you've got our ticket mixed up. You see my…," she waved to Ulquiorra, but stopped mid-sentence, puzzled on what she should call him, "…friend got these tickets from a…raffle."

"My apologies miss," but instead of leaving her alone, he returned the tickets to her and pointed at it, "it's a golden ticket. Which means it's a ticket that includes _all_ of our services. Prepaid. Restaurant, hotel, spa, bar, you name it." He grinned at her.

"Oh my," was all Orihime could say. She stared at the tickets wordlessly as the man excused himself.

_A day at a five-star hotel? Oh goodness_, she fretted. _Massages, alcohol… and fluffy pillows!_

She slowly looked up from the tickets and was startled to see bright green eyes looking right at her.

"Explain, onna," he demanded.

"Umm…," she placed the tickets back into her nurse neatly, "well it seems we get to stay the night here. For free!" she added positively.

"I don't want to," and he didn't. Being in the same room with the lights off with the woman would drive him over the edge.

Orihime pouted. She knew he wouldn't be too happy with staying at a strange, random place, but the hotel that hosted Ichibon was ginormous and absolutely gorgeous! She refused to deny such a present even though Ulquiorra was the one that made this event possible.

She was about to complain and whine and maybe possibly fake a few tears in when their waiter returned with water, two wine glasses, and an expensive-looking bottle of wine. As their waiter poured the red wine gracefully into the glasses, Orihime watched his etiquette with amazement while Ulquiorra sat with a bored expression, hands in his pockets and slouching.

When the waiter had left, Orihime took the glass of wine daintily with her fingers and tilted it so that the wine could only touch her lips. She licked her lips and smacked them together loudly and squealed in delight, satisfied with the quality. Ulquiorra took his glass and eyed it warily, fully aware that it was alcohol and if he were to indulge himself too much in it, he would lose control of his senses.

No longer wanting to watch Orihime take longer swigs of the drink, he slouched further into his seat and looked at the menu from his position lazily. He didn't recognize any of the dishes so when the waiter had returned, he decided to order whatever Orihime did.

"Aww!" Orihime cooed, a blush now apparent on her smooth cheeks, "You ordered the same thing as me!" she giggled, "that's like a couple thing, y'know!"

"Onna," he was eyeing her carefully now, "I suggest you not to spoil yourself with that alcohol. Someone may take advantage of you and you won't have your senses to protect yourself."

"But it's sooooo good," she drooled, "besides, you're here to protect me."

Ulquiorra wanted to deny such a positive assessment, but she was somewhat correct. He wouldn't leave her side for a minute if he knew it would mean putting her in danger's way_. Possessiveness_, he excused himself.

Their food arrived: a small portion of meat decorated with greens and a pretty arrangement of mushrooms and creamy white sauce, drizzled and steaming, dressed over it. Watching the way Orihime dug into her food, Ulquiorra picked up his fork vigilantly and prodded at a mushroom on his plate. Hearing the tapping of utensil on china, Orihime snapped her head up and looked at Ulquiorra, her mouth smothered with sauce.

"Oh! That's right. You don't eat a lot, huh. So you must still think it's kinda awkward," she grinned. Was she mocking him?

Ulquiorra frowned and pressed harder on the mushroom, stabbing into its delicate flesh with the prongs of the fork forcing juicy liquid to seep out of its wounds. He lifted his fork with the now captured fungus and placed it between his lips and on his tongue. His facial expression withered slightly as he forced it down his throat. He concluded that he did not like fungi.

"Here, Ulquiorra," Orihime stifled a laugh as best as she could as she pulled something out of her purse and handed it to him, "I had a feeling you wouldn't like such exotic food so I brought some chocolate syrup for you!"

Ulquiorra took the bottle and was about to apply it to his entrée when Orihime suddenly reached over the table and grabbed it from him.

"Wait, wait! I want to try something," she dragged his plate over to her side, much to his annoyance and hummed happily as she drew a design on his plate. She pushed the plate back to him when she was finished and placed the syrup back into her purse. Ulquiorra stared at his mutilated dish in bewilderment.

"It's a heart!" she pointed, "See, it says 'I heart—," she drew the heart symbol in the air with her finger as she said it, "—you!"

Ulquiorra felt irritated again. _Another symbol for the heart_?

"I don't understand," he muttered as he skewered through the meat of his now chocolate-coated dish, amusement masking his irritation as pink blood gushed. Elegantly, he placed the portion into his mouth and chewed, lifting his eyebrows in satisfaction with the somewhat tolerable taste.

Orihime beamed at him, surprised they shared the same taste buds.

"The heart means a lot. In both emotion and words. That's why there's a lot of ways to show it and a lot of things attached to it that mean the same way. Like a kiss, for example, is like giving your heart to whoever you kiss. Just like the ring. That's why it's much better when you receive something in turn," she explained.

Ulquiorra took this information in as he chewed slowly. He never understood the purpose of kissing. He knew that the lips are the one place on the body where the most nerve endings are located, thus making it extremely delicate and intensifying any pressure applied to it, but he didn't understand what made the action of pressing flesh upon flesh so desirable and pleasurable.

"Can I kiss you, onna?" he asked sincerely, viridian eyes now trained on her.

"W-w-what?" she sputtered. She was aware that Ulquiorra is new to a lot of things, but she was worried about how she should reply to his request. What if he had feelings for her and she just turned him down right there? _Talk about awkward_…

"I've…never been kissed before… so I don't think I will be of any help to you, Ulquiorra," she smiled apologetically.

Ulquiorra was really interested now. So kissing was a desirable event, yet the woman had never experienced it? Humans were so complicated. If they want something, they rarely sought to obtain it.

Swallowing the last piece of his meal, he politely dabbed his mouth dry with his napkin and looked towards the stage from where he heard chords of a piano being struck harmoniously. He decided to add the kissing subject to his mental list of 'Things To Do'.

"Isn't she gorgeous?" he heard Orihime muse from across the table. He assumed she was talking about the woman playing the piano.

Now focusing onto the woman he had never noticed before, he observed that she was a very young woman around the age of 25 years. Wavy, ginger hair longer than Orihime's cascaded down her back and swayed along with her shoulders as she struck the keys of a jazzy tune. A seductive, black dress enhanced her well-endowed figure and complimented her amethyst eyes.

"Yes," he replied nonchalantly as he watched the stranger move around in her seat dramatically. Her hair was slightly fascinating.

Orihime felt a little shocked to hear Ulquiorra respond that way, but she didn't want to express herself in fear he would take it as jealousy. Instead, she picked up her plate and, with the aid of a spoon, shoveled the rest of her meal down her throat.

"That was the lovely Hiroshige Miyako ladies and gentlemen!" a waiter on stage announced.

The redheaded beauty walked to the center of the stage and bowed gracefully, her fiery hair falling over her shoulders like water. She glided off stage much to Orihime's content.

_What a sassy, bitch_, Orihime fussed to herself, _wouldn't be surprised if she was into drugs and shit._

Sensing killing intent, Ulquiorra looked over at the source to see Orihime fuming as she glared at her empty plate. He sighed, pushed his seat back, and stood up.

"Come, onna," he beckoned her to follow him out the restaurant by turning his back to her.

She must have moved too fast for her tipsy mind to process and almost fell back when she tried to step forward, but ended up landing on the wrong side of her high heel instead. Ulquiorra was back to support her in an instant with his sonido, too fast for all the people present to comprehend.

All of them, except Hiroshige Miyako.

She peered at the raven-haired boy from behind the stage curtain in mild interest as he held up a girl in his arms.

Ulquiorra sighed, irritated.

"I forget you have yet to learn how to walk, onna."

"Sorry, Ulquiorra," she grinned ruefully at him and giggled softly, "I think I'll need help walking this time."

"You did not drink much alcohol," he chided, but he tucked an arm underneath hers so that she could lean onto him as they continued to make their exit.

…

"Mmm… that's better," Orihime exhaled the fresh air she had just taken.

Upon realizing there was no place for the young adults to loiter downtown, he escorted her with sonido to a nearby park. By now, it was already dark. The sky was a dark hue of purple with tiny lanterns of stars dotting the horizon and twinkling their radiance in nothingness. The park was dimly lit with light posts scattered around spaciously and large oak trees surrounding its round perimeter.

The girl lifted her foot up causing the seat carrying her to swing forward. She felt the wind pass through her hair and tickle her earlobes as she breathed in the rush of air. Pitching her body forward to swing one last time, she jumped off and landed on her feet successfully.

"Ta da!" she cheered, arms raised above her head. She looked at Ulquiorra for approval that she was now alcohol-free.

Ulquiorra made no comment as he watched over her. She looked so fragile to him. Not because she was a human, but something about her made her all the more precious. Sacred. Pure. He felt an overwhelming sensation to take care of her. He blamed it on Aizen for bestowing this mission on him.

He felt a familiar tug on his sleeve again and looked down at the girl who was peering up at him through messy bangs with curiosity. She stuck her bottom lip out and tried to blow her bangs away from her vision lethargically. Annoyed with her laziness, Ulquiorra brushed the strands from her forehead causing her to blush deeply.

At the corner of his eyes, he saw something reflect the light of the nearby lamp post near her neck. Focusing on it now, he noticed that Orihime had fashioned a necklace out of her hairpins and a thin, silver chain. It looked rather nicely that way.

Noticing Ulquiorra was staring at her hairpins, she placed a hand on them and an idea sparked in her mind.

"Oh! Ulquiorra, since we're here, I want to show you some new tricks I've learned these past five years!" she dashed away from him and towards the edge of the park, near the forest, glancing back and motioning for him to follow.

Curious to what level her power had evolved to, Ulquiorra slowly sauntered over to her and he watched as she raised both her palms out in front of her.

"Enlighten, Koten Zanshun," she whispered and immediately, her hairpin responded.

A blinding orange-yellow light released itself from her hairpins and condensed into a single rod in front of her hands. When she wrapped her fingers around the concentration of light, it sparked and shaped into a zanpakutou. Lowering her right hand with the sword-like object, she glanced at Ulquiorra, pleased to see his eyes had widened with surprise that she was able to materialize a sword.

"My friend Hachi told me my powers resembled that of a zanpakutou… Ever since I've always been curious as to what he meant. And so far this has happened," she swelled with pride.

In heated excitement, she threw her armed arm back and lurched forward, releasing her materialized Koten Zanshun into the forest, rejecting apart any obstacle in its path. It reminded Ulquiorra of his Lanza del Relampago except it never made impact on a solid object and exploded with massive force. Instead, her sword of rejection returned to her in a boomerang fashion in which she caught gracefully in her right hand on time.

Orihime silently praised Tsubaki for cooperating, dismissed his presence, and turned to Ulquiorra who was now looking at her with soft eyes the same color as the forest she had just deforestated.

"Oh!" she turned back to the forest and called out 'Sōten Kisshun' to restore the entire forest to its original state all at once. When she was finished, she walked up to Ulquiorra, a smile stretching from ear to ear.

"That's… rather impressive honestly," he told her. He didn't fail to notice the girl's breathing was slightly labored, "You also managed to heal such a large area at once. Surely, your nakama cannot survive without you."

"Thank you! I worked really hard," she blushed at his compliments.

Slightly fatigued, she stumbled forward onto Ulquiorra's chest and leaned into him, relying on his steady feet. Ulquiorra removed a hand from his pockets and placed them on the small of her back to support her. She responded to his gentle touch by inhaling deeply and exhaling, her hands slowly making their way to the aching hollow hole underneath his shirt.

"Ulquiorra, you smell so nice," she breathed out, her lips brushing delicately against fabric.

At first, he planned to be no more intimate than placing his hand on her back, but the moment was getting underneath his hierro. Here, against his chest, was a girl who had grown to fully trust and care for him. She fed him and sheltered him, laughing and providing him everything without asking for anything in return. Inoue Orihime had grown into a very strong, independent woman despite needing Ulquiorra to escort her around everywhere she went, but it suited him just fine.

He then adjusted his plan so that he would go no further than to take his other hand and place it gingerly underneath her chin and angle her head up so he could see her glowing, colorful face. But it was her glistening, gray eyes boring into his soul that seemed to strip him free of all his securities. Her brow was soft and unworried, her cheeks harboring that familiar beautiful shade of pink. His eyes wandered from her cloudy gaze to her soft, virgin lips.

Abandoning all plans of remaining cool and indifferent, Ulquiorra slightly tilted his head to the side and lowered his face and pressed his lips softly against hers. First, experimentally, but as he felt her body flinch beautifully underneath him and lean closer to answer him, he found himself deepening the kiss and applying more pressure. Orihime mirrored his miniscule actions causing Ulquiorra's hand to compress her body into him in urgency for more and his other hand was now entangled in her sweet caramel-brown hair. The taste of honey seeped onto his taste buds as she softened her lips on his. A growing sense of need and craving emerged within Ulquiorra and so many more emotions that he couldn't describe. The softness of her lips pressing against his and the way he could feel every inch of her responding wordlessly to him amazed him.

The kiss only lasted for a few seconds, but it was gentle, sweet, and restrained. Ulquiorra broke apart from the kiss first, knowing that if he procrastinated any longer, it may lead him to do something that would ruin his relationship with Orihime forever. Gazing into her cloudy, gray eyes he realized he would rather take this painfully slow than spend a day without these same eyes caring for him.

Still holding her in his hands, he felt a weak sliver of a smile tugging at his lips which ended up forcing him to smirk.

_This, here in my hand… the heart?_

…

Not 5 seconds after he had pulled away from the kiss, his 'heart' collapsed in his arms. Ulquiorra dutifully carried the princess back to the hotel, handling the booking process to the best of his ability with the tickets he fished out of her purse as she slept.

When he finally managed to switch on the lights with the woman in his arms he was stunned to find that there was only one bed in the room. He concluded that the chair would have to do for tonight.

Tenderly, he placed the fragile girl on the bed and shifted the sheets to cover her. When he stepped back to turn off the lights, he saw Orihime tense under the sheets and her brow crease in anxiety. Ulquiorra blinked slowly and turned away to switch the lights off, but returned to her side at the bed and brushed her face clear of any strands of auburn hair. With this final gesture, her expression relaxed and Ulquiorra felt the throbbing of his hollow hole still and peace wash over him.

He had managed to cross out two things from his mental list of 'Things To Conquer (do)' simultaneously, so it only left two more goals.

_What is 'love'_?

* * *

**So Ulquiorra finally gets to understand what the heart is in this story!**  
**And what could the second thing on his list possibly be?**

**Wew! Really long chapter, but I really, really hope you guys liked it! I worked super hard on it every day! I totally needed to get some UlquiHime development in~ But do not fret, my readers, for they have a Part 2 of their little date coming up next!**

**Please drop a review! I would really appreciate it ^_^**


	7. Resolution

**This chapter as a load of drama in it, but my goal for this story is to stay in character as much as possible! Unfortunately, this means slow progress for our couple, but the good news is that it'll only make their relationship better! Please, please, please take a few seconds of your time to leave me a review! I love reading them and it really makes me smile~**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Sometime during the night, Orihime could have sworn she was sleepwalking. She vaguely remembered awakening in the middle of the night in a room that was definitely not hers. Scared, worried, and half-awake, she looked frantically around the room and saw a familiar head of raven black hair nestled on a desk to the right of her. A sense of relief immediately washed over her and she leaned over to comb her fingers through the boy's soft hair. The boy sighed awake, eyes flickering open, his emeralds eyes shining in the dark.

The sleepy-headed girl crawled out of bed and nudged the boy on the shoulder with her palm. He grumbled in complaint. Lifting his heavy head from his arms that cradled his head on the desk, he turned over, exposing his inviting, empty lap to her. She crawled into his lap, curling into a little ball as his arms wrapped securely around her and went back to sleep.

Before Ulquiorra could come to his senses, a very warm and heavy girl had made herself at home in his lap.

"Onna?" he whispered tiredly.

The only response was the sound of her even breathing and the muted beating of her heart in the still room.

Tenderly, Ulquiorra carried her in his arms once more and placed her back on the bed. He only meant to return her back to the bed, but when he tried to part with her, the arms she had wrapped around his neck wouldn't give way. Sighing, Ulquiorra climbed in bed with her, her arms still wrapped tightly around his neck. He held her until he could lay her head down on the soft pillow, which consequently had him hovering over her, their lips only a few centimeters apart.

Looking down at the oblivious girl, her sweet breath tickled his cheek as he reached a hand behind his head to gently pry her hands apart to release him. He watched the way her chest rose and fell with every breath that passed through the lips he had claimed not long ago and the way she shuddered when he was finally able to free himself from her grasp. The princess's brow furrowed and her relaxed expression turned to one of anxiety.

Worried that she would wake up or remain restless throughout the rest of the night, he tilted her chin up lightly, just enough to give him sight of her jawline and lowered his head and planted a tender, calming kiss right below her jaw.

Suddenly, Ulquiorra felt Orihime's inner thigh graze gently against him in between his legs. He winced as pleasure shot through him from his groin and settled in his face as heat. Enchanted by the feeling of her shapely body writhing underneath his pressure and the intoxicating, sweet smell of her hair, he kissed her more feverishly, unable to stop himself. He felt Orihime buck her hips underneath him again, her legs stroking against him deliciously as he tasted her.

His fingers ached to cup the breasts that threatened to spill out of the folds of her dress, but his hand hesitated as he felt her mouth quiver against his cheek.

"K…Kuro...saki…kun" she murmured against his ebony hair.

And just like that, all security surrounding him and the girl shattered mercilessly and he felt his hollow hole erupt in pain. The trust Orihime had worked so hard for was lost just like his thoughts. An overwhelming sensation of emptiness was swallowing him back into the abyss he had lived in before he met her. He closed his eyes and rested his forehead on the pillow beside her, feeling her chest rise and fall rhythmically below his.

Frowning, Ulquiorra removed himself from Orihime and got off the bed. He grabbed an empty Styrofoam cup from the desk he was sleeping at and searched through the refrigerator for ice. With a cup full of ice, he escaped to the bathroom to prepare for a very cold bath.

* * *

Orihime snapped her eyes open and swallowed to cool her burning throat. Jolting upright, her vision slowly adjusted as her heart raced underneath her chest. She analyzed her current situation.

_Ulquiorra must have brought me to the hotel_, she realized.

Suddenly, last night's events rushed back into her consciousness and she felt color and blood drain from her face.

His kiss. Her first kiss. His first kiss. Their first kiss. Shared.

His lips always looked so thin and hard when he frowned, but when they touched hers, the creaminess made her insides melt. However, it wasn't his kiss that made her lose consciousness last night. She thought she saw him smile. No wait. He _did_. His dark lips were definitely tilted at the corner in a smirk. _And God was that hot_. But shouldn't she be mad he stole her first kiss?

Her first kiss was surprisingly gentle, not cold and emotionless like Ulquiorra's personality. Within those few seconds, she felt as though he was expressing his feelings to her through his touch. She felt passion, need, lust, and so much more. It was beautifully overwhelming.

She couldn't deny it. She was addicted to him. He was a drug she had become obsessed with ever since he spared her in Las Noches. Cold, dispassionate Ulquiorra Cifer… every action that seemed out of character made her swoon, making her wait anxiously for more surprises. She loved those unattached, forbidden touches, his seductive voice flowing into her ears, and his possessive, intimate marks on her neck.

_No! No, Hime! You slut! You shouldn't give up on Ichigo!_

She raised her palms to her cheeks and slapped herself lightly to wake herself up from her daydream.

With her adrenaline rush fading away, Orihime swung her feet over the edge of the bed, stretched, and stood up. Double-checking the room, she didn't see Ulquiorra in the proximity. Orihime felt a tingling sensation building up at her nose and sneezed loudly.

_Ugh, it's so cold in here! I'm going to catch a cold!_

Searching for a towel to wipe her snot with, she heard her cell phone chime from inside her purse behind her. Settling with having to wipe her nose with her sleeve, she ambled over to her purse and retrieved her flip phone.

_Email from Kurosaki-kun_, it read.

She felt her heart squeeze in apprehension. What could Ichigo want her for? Did something bad happen with a hollow? Was someone hurt?

Tucking her thumb underneath the cover, she flipped open her phone which automatically opened the message for her.

"_Hey Inoue! It's been a while since we've hung out and all. I was wondering if you wanted to catch up on some stuff for lunch? Call me back! Oh and I'm doing fine with the hollows. Stop worrying_," she read aloud.

_A date with Kurosaki-kun_?!

She felt steam release from her ears and her face grow hot from excitement. This was the moment she was waiting for. To reunite with her knight and be whisked away in his arms towards a future full of awesome sex and happiness. If Ulquiorra's kiss had been that amazing, surely Ichigo's would be jaw-dropping, orgasm-inducing sexy! She guessed it would be okay to be mentally and physically prepared for his kiss. Hopefully, she wouldn't pass out again if that chance ever came.

Orihime squealed in excitement and stomped her feet animatedly, but froze mid-action when she thought she heard Ulquiorra's low voice start to reprimand her from behind her. She turned around swiftly, but found no dark-haired Espada leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets. She checked around her once more. Still nothing.

Sneezing again, she realized that neither she nor Ulquiorra had any clothes to change into from last night. The dress that she was currently wearing made her even more vulnerable to illness.

With a frown, she grabbed all of her belongings and set out to idle in their manmade hot springs and bask underneath the fingers of a well-trained masseuse, forgetting all about Ichigo's text.

…

Unable to sleep after spending three hours in an ice cold bath, Ulquiorra had been wandering around the massive hotel. He didn't have any other clothes to change into so he had to settle with his formal attire.

Hands in his pockets, he continued to saunter down a hallway of many doors. He turned around the corner, minding his own business when someone rudely bumped into him from behind. Preparing to smack the trash to Hueco Mundo, he rapidly turned around to face his opponent, but instead he ended up looking straight into the violet eyes of Hiroshige Miyako.

"Ah, I'm sorry, I was in a hurry," she placed her grimy hands on his chest and swiped away from invisible dirt that she could have transmitted onto him.

Ulquiorra imperceptibly shuddered and swatted the woman's hands away from him.

"I wasn't even in your way, trash. You had plenty of time to observe your surroundings and avoid any collisions," he glared menacingly at her, his cold, viridian eyes calculating, "You want something."

"My, my," she droned, "You really are quick one. I really—" she placed her hand on his chest again, near his hollow hole,"—_really_ like that."

She leaned in closer to him and batted her long, fake eyelashes at him. He winced at her close proximity, but made no move to free himself from her touch. Miyako took a step closer while Ulquiorra did the opposite.

"Where's your girlfriend?" her eyelids lowered halfway, seductively, "Did you guys get into a fight?"

Ulquiorra's black lips tightened into a thin line.

Closing the distance, her breasts were now fully flushed against his hard chest. He had to angle his head downwards to continue staring at her. She looked up at him with sultry, amethyst eyes while her hand trailed from his chest to his abdomen. Ulquiorra stiffened immediately on feeling foreign contact on where it shouldn't be.

"I'm just going to stop beating around the bush," she pushed against him with her body, her warm, skinny hand now firmly sprawled dangerously low on his abdomen. He stepped back, but found himself barred by the wall. He hardened his gaze at her, trying to figure out what she was trying to do.

"I'll give you something that girl never can," she continued, biting her bottom lip lustfully. With a flick of her chin, she flipped her wavy, auburn side-swept bangs from her face gracefully.

For someone as empty as himself, anything that would fill the void would pique his curiosity. What could this trash give that Orihime couldn't? Ulquiorra was definitely curious as to what this woman had in mind. Obviously, this woman did not fear him.

Did she have the ability to reject reality? To completely deny the rules of the universe?

Could this trash also stir the same sensations Orihime had never failed to do every moment he was with her?

Would she drive him to the point of insanity, yet he wouldn't be able to hurt her?

There was only one way to find out.

"And what would that be?" he deadpanned.

Miyako responded by removing her hand from his stomach and roughly pulling his green-checkered tie in towards her. She stood on her toes and licked Ulquiorra's bottom lip as she forcefully reigned him in to meet her halfway.

Ulquiorra's eyes widened in shock, realizing what the woman's true intentions were. He felt utterly disgusted in himself for not seeing it earlier, but when the woman tugged on his tie harder to plant her lipstick-coated lips against his lips, he found himself unable to move. It wasn't the way the woman wrapped her arm rightly around his neck that kept him immobile. Nor was it the fact that when she closed her eyes to deepen the kiss that she reminded him of another auburn-haired girl.

It was the devastating set of emotions that immediately stirred within him that shocked him frozen.

Something wasn't right.

The kiss was passionate. Undeniably sexy and alluring. The woman smelled good of expensive, synthetic perfume and her body was irresistible. The way her mouth moved against his as she parted to lips to ask for entrance into his with her tongue, was hard to deny. Ulquiorra was sure, at that moment, that this is what lust truly was. Humans, Hollows, Shinigami… they would all be tempted to this seductress.

But the overwhelming sensation that something was wrong was enclosing Ulquiorra.

It was as if a cold, dark blanket had covered him, rendering him blind and his senses numb. It was the complete opposite of what he had felt with Orihime and that was how he knew that what he was allowing to happen with Miyako would definitely hurt the girl.

This was what he wanted wasn't it? He was merely curious as to what a kiss was. He did not want any unnecessary trouble. Surely, the act of kissing is all the same, correct?

But why did this seem like an entirely different event from last night?

He clenched his fists tightly in his pockets.

…

"Mmm… That felt so nice!" Orihime mused aloud.

Running her fingers through ginger strands of hair, she sighed happily. It was a different kind of happiness for her. All her life, she had to live with optimism and fake smiles so she wouldn't worry, her friends, but for once, she felt complete. A warm sensation vibrated within her with every step she took.

_Massages are so great_, she thought to herself.

Lightly treading on the carpeted floors of the hotel's hallways, she continued to make her way back to her room, hoping Ulquiorra would be there so they could leave right away.

"Ah, but what to do today… Oh! Oh my gosh, I totally forgot!" Orihime reached into her purse while she walked and pulled out her cell phone. In her absentmindedness, she had forgotten all about Ichigo despite being so excited that her moment had come.

She flipped her phone open and made a few clicks to direct her back to the message. Silently, she read the message over and over again to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Her thumb was about to press on the green button to call him back when she heard a very intimate and feminine moan from around the corner she was about to turn.

Orihime halted and planted her feet softly on the carpet. Immediately, blood rushed to her face. She almost dropped her cell phone having her fingers frozen in awkwardness, but she regained her composure just in time.

_Was someone really doing_ that_ here_? She fretted.

But being the young, innocent, curious virgin she was, she supposed she could indirectly peek by passing by like she had no idea someone was there.

The young, innocent, curious virgin placed her cell phone back into her purse quietly and stood up straight with poise. Preparing to intrude on the unseeing couple, she awkwardly marched closer to the corner.

Rounding the corner of the hallway, she instantly spotted a curl of bright, orange hair. Continuing her pace warily, she recognized that hair belonged to Miyako. A few split seconds and a step later, she saw him.

There was Ulquiorra within the arms of the gorgeous pianist Hiroshige Miyako, her own fingers seemingly playing a piece on his body as she violated his unclaimed neck with her tongue.

The blood that rushed to her face only a few seconds ago immediately drained to her feet and she suddenly found it very hard to breath. She wanted to throw up.

She watched as Ulquiorra slowly opened his eyes and shifted those dark, green orbs in her direction, his eyes widening in shock. Her heart immediately dropped into her stomach and she felt like running away, but it was all too confusing for her. Why did it matter to her? In fact, Orihime felt very proud that Ulquiorra was starting to become more human and move on from nihility… right?

Orihime was battling with an unknown force within her. She was confused with herself and towards Ulquiorra. Did she do something wrong? Was she not good enough that Ulquiorra would immedi—

And then it hit her.

Ulquiorra only came here for her body.

That was the only reason. That's why he was never affected by her. That's why he was letting himself be embraced by a stranger. _That could be the only reason_.

"Ah…!" Orihime raised her hands up as if she were surrendering, "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry for intruding! Aha! Haha!"

She laughed loudly and awkwardly, ending with a hiccup. She shut her eyes tightly on feeling the familiar tingling sensation prickling at the corners of her eyes and her nose. She wouldn't cry now. Not here, not with Ulquiorra. Not only would he think she's weak, but he'll misunderstand.

The auburn-haired girl didn't even understand why she felt like she was about to cry, but she wasn't going to stick around any longer for anyone to see.

Still laughing, she readjusted her purse on her shoulder and clutched it tightly, hoping all her stress would manifest physically and be released that way, but she knew better. Fixing her posture once more, she marched past Ulquiorra and Miyako, _still _laughing.

A few feet away, she swiftly turned around and gave the staring Ulquiorra a thumbs up and an encouraging wink and then immediately turned back around and retreated to her room. Ulquiorra couldn't help but notice that when Orihime winked, a small, almost-undetectable tear escaped from her left eye.

He mentally kicked himself for letting his guard down not only for Miyako, but for not being able to sense Orihime's approaching presence.

Ulquiorra felt a different fire erupt from within him.

Angrily, Ulquiorra placed his hands on the shoulders of the woman in front of him and shoved her roughly away from him. Stumbling a few feet back, she looked up at him and gave him a nasty glare, but he had yet to turn his gaze away from Orihime's receding figure.

He felt as though he should spit on Miyako, but he knew he was partially at fault. And spending more than a mere second with such trash was unimaginable. It was his fault. That was unquestionable. And he wouldn't be able to forgive himself. He didn't understand why this sense of regret was mercilessly engulfing him, but he realized, this foreign feeling did not make him feel so vacant. It made him feel sadness instead.

Ulquiorra quickly sonido'd to the girl, eliciting a sharp gasp from her as he pinned her against the wall harshly with his sudden proximity.

Orihime looked up at him, her bright eyes widening with a pinch of fear. Ulquiorra's face was dark, slightly obscured by his long, raven-black hair, but his eyes glistened with some emotion Orihime couldn't label. Unable to smile any longer, Orihime's brow creased and face wilted as tears flowed down her face. She shut her eyes closed and lowered her head, fisting her hands beside her stiffly, and attempted to lessen the flow of her tears.

Ulquiorra was taken aback.

He had never seen this weak, vulnerable side of hers up close. She had always waited until she thought he couldn't see her. However, now that he knew what the very essence of sadness and confusion looked like, sympathy was seizing at his hollow hole and he yearned to make her smile again or for her to open her eyes and give him that fierce stare he had been captivated by. The burning sensation he had felt when he saw Orihime's first tear and now become a force compelling him to fall on his knees with sadness.

This is why he thought emotions were a burden. It made him weaker. It obviously made Orihime weaker, but it made Orihime who she was.

Grabbing her wrist, Ulquiorra could only stare at the top of her head in genuine concern. It was meaningless. All of it. The new set of emotions that threatened to ruin his very character, Orihime's reaction, his curiosity, the weight of this event inducing him to such human characteristics. All of it.

"Do you think I'm pathetic?" Orihime whispered almost too softly. Her voice was strained and shaky. She couldn't help it. The realization that Ulquiorra had just been toying with her hit her hard.

Ulquiorra didn't respond. He didn't understand what the woman was rambling about. It had absolutely nothing to do with the current situation. Was she referring to her tears? He didn't even understand why she was crying in the first place. He should be the one inquiring.

Meanwhile, as Ulquiorra mused over the simple question, Orihime misunderstood his silence. Sniffling, she dug into her purse and pulled out her cell phone. Flipping it open, she dialed the number for Ichigo as Ulquiorra watched her random decision.

The dial tone rang about five times and just when Orihime thought Ichigo wasn't going to pick up, he did.

"Oh hey, Kurosaki-kun! It's Orihime. I got your message," she chirped, a sad smile surfacing on her wet fact. Ulquiorra continued to look at her silently, but her eyes avoided him.

"Yes… yes! Yeah, I can definitely meet you there," she inserted a giggle, "Alright, Kurosaki-kun. I'll meet you there, but I've gotta head home to get ready… What? Oh no, I, um, spent a night at my friend's house here. I'm fine Kurosaki-kun!"

Ulquiorra was getting dreadfully bored hearing the woman talk to the person she was infatuated with. He couldn't fathom what she loved about that boy. _Hearts beating as one_? He felt nauseous at the ridiculousness of it all.

"Okay, I'll see you in a few then, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime snapped her flip phone shut, but kept her head lowered while her mouth construed into a tight line.

Irritated, Ulquiorra placed a hand under her chin to lift her head up, but she flinched at her touch. Ulquiorra's hand hesitated below her face, catching a few new tears that dripped from her chin, and then slowly backed away, lowering his arms to his sides.

He watched as Orihime left him, her hair obscuring his view of her eyes and the tint of pink that coated her pale cheeks and stuffy nose.

And just like that, all the sensations he had newly experienced vanished and he was left alone. Cold and confused.

He had never felt so empty in his entire existence.

* * *

To Orihime, it felt kind of strange to return home without immediately seeing the image of Ulquiorra's dark figure scrunched up on the couch and facing towards the television. She felt her heart squeeze and a new wave of tears prickling her eyes. The fact that she couldn't understand why she was so distraught made her even more upset.

Sure, she realized Ulquiorra had been teasing her senseless. The Espada even stole her first kiss. But some unknown reason made her throat dry and her heart lurch forward in pain. Was she being used? She couldn't even tell at this point.

After the auburn-haired girl showered, she dressed into a casual dress: a string-halter gray dress that flowed loosely around her knees. She avoided looking into the mirror knowing fully well that she would just see the image of a fiery-haired witch, but she felt that there was nothing she could do. If she applied concealer underneath her eyes, it might just be washed away by tears.

_I should be happy_, she thought to herself. Sadness loomed over her and she found it difficult to muster a smile. Happy Kurosaki-kun didn't forget about me, happy that I have a chance, happy that Ulquiorra was so strong and independent…

"Geez, it's like Ulquiorra broke up with me!" she lifted her arms straight into the air and brought them down as dead-weight on her head as if she were punishing herself.

"But we aren't even dating," she blushed. _Was that idea even possible_?

She shook her head. Obviously not.

Stepping out of her apartment and closing the door behind her, she headed towards the local café Ichigo and her had agreed to meet at.

…

Ulquiorra felt extremely frustrated.

_Why am I here watching over the onna like this_? He contemplated.

The Arrancar peered at her head of bright, caramel locks as she passed under him. When she had walked a good distance from him, he silently Sonido'd to the next building's roof, concealing his reiatsu with ease.

He observed her strong poise as she walked, her fists balled up in determination, but he also noted how her face was flushed from crying not long ago, the dark circles under her eyes, and her mouth arched downwards in a frown. It certainly didn't suit Inoue Orihime. Although he had seen this face before, he had become accustomed to her blinding smile and her clumsy habits.

Raven black hair whipped his face as Ulquiorra landed on the roof of the building Orihime had disappeared inside of. Waiting a few minutes, he watched her reemerge from indoors, a puzzled look evident on her face. Then, Orihime sat down at a nearby table outside of the café and waited for her knight patiently.

Ten minutes past 3 o'clock, Orihime took out her cell phone and started to mindlessly press some buttons to stave off her boredom.

For the next thirty minutes, Orihime would occasionally lift her head up from her phone and scan her surroundings quickly only to slump her shoulders in disappointment when her expectations were not met.

One hour, Orihime decided to order sweetened ice tea with red bean paste (much to the waiter's confusion). Ulquiorra could tell she was getting dehydrated from sitting outside on a humid, autumn day.

An hour and thirty minutes later, Ulquiorra was getting irritated, but before he decided to jump down and accompany the woman instead, Kurosaki Ichigo managed to arrive 'just in time'.

"Yo, Inoue," Ichigo had an apologetic tone to his greeting, his arms in his pockets as he smirked at Orihime.

Orihime looked up from her phone slowly and hesitatingly and locked eyes with the strawberry-haired boy. Were those tears Ulquiorra saw glistening at the corners of her eyes? His rage started to build up to a dangerous level.

"Kurosaki-kun!" she beamed at him. Despite today's events, it seemed to Ulquiorra she could steal all the Sun's rays and display it with her smile.

"Sorry, I'm late, Inoue-san. There was a hollow nearby and it took a bit longer than I thought. I should've called you," he frowned.

"Oh that's okay, Kurosaki-kun! Come sit! You must be tired."

Ichigo took a seat in front of her and sighed heavily. Orihime sipped the straw of her drink and continued to smile at him.

"I mean I could've gotten here earlier if Grimmjow coulda helped me, but the guy is always going out and lazing around like some cat," he grimaced.

"Oh Grimmjow is staying with you?" she perked up.

"He's such a handful!" Ichigo threw his hands up in exasperation, "All he does is eat our food and then find some way to tick me off so we could fight. Thank God Soul Society limited his powers or it would go on and on forever!"

Orihime just laughed routinely.

After a few more minutes of meaningless chatter about the blue-haired Espada, Ichigo mentioned his name.

"Ul-Ulquiorra?" she stuttered, her eyes wide with surprise.

"Yeah, have you seen him? I bet he arrived with the other Arrancar. Oh man, that reminds me. I saw Nel and Nnoitra making out at the local park the other day. That was freaking nasty."

Ulquiorra wanted to nod in agreement with the boy. Nnoitra was utterly disgusting.

Orihime emitted her usual giggle in response and then proceeded respond "No, I haven't seen Ulquiorra."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Well, I guess I could imagine him being in Hueco Mundo by himself, but knowing and _seeing_ what he did to you five years ago…," Ichigo's voice trailed off and his fists clenched on the table.

"Kurosaki-kun, don't beat yourself up over it. It wasn't your fault! Besides, I'm perfectly fine now! And I am capable of taking care of myself. You know I've gotten stronger!" she reassured.

"He tore your clothes into shreds, Inoue. He saw you _naked_. Don't you feel disturbed? Scarred?" he stressed.

Orihime shook her head, "Mm… I don't think Ulquiorra had intentions like that. He isn't scary like Nnoitra. I was never afraid of him," she murmured her last sentence quietly, her gaze switched from Ichigo's brown eyes to the crowded sidewalk next to her.

At mentioning the Arrancar's name, Orihime suddenly felt her mood darken. She looked away in fear that she would start crying and then she would be forced to confess to Ichigo about Ulquiorra.

"Ugh," Ichigo ran his hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his head in confusion, "I don't know, Inoue. I'm pretty worried for you."

"Why, Kurosaki-kun?" she whispered.

"Huh?"

She turned her head back to look at him, gray eyes staring into blue.

"Why do you care about me so much?"

"You're a precious friend of mine, Inoue," he blinked twice at her.

"Is it because I'm weak? Because I have to depend on you?" Her voice started to rise in pitch.

"What? No!" Ichigo was astounded by her attitude.

"Then why?"

"I told you, Inoue-san, you mean a lot to me."

Orihime bit her lips, her brow furrowing. Years of frustration were emerging from deep within her soul and threatening to spill from her quivering, pink lips.

"Is that all, Kurosaki-kun?" she really wanted to know. It was about time.

"Inoue-san…"

Orihime abruptly stood up, pushing her chair back, and slammed her hands on the table.

"Why do we still have these honorifics? Why do I still call you by your last name and you the same? Why does it seem like this barrier has never been broken? Kurosaki-kun… I…!"

Orihime stuttered, her voice quickly losing its strength. She lowered her head and stared at the table, tears were freely spilling from her eyes again, but for a different purpose. _Why did this day suck so much_?

"Kurosaki-kun, I've always thought more of you," she breathed out softly.

Ichigo stared at her wide-eyed, not expecting this moment to happen so quickly. He was dumbfounded, a fly caught in a spider's web. He dreaded for this moment. Of course he knew Orihime had feelings for him, but he didn't want to jeopardize their friendship.

"I think highly of you too, Inoue-san. Why are you crying? Don't cry…"

Orihime couldn't take it anymore. After pulling out her wallet and leaving payment for her drink on the table, she collected all the strength she had left to run away from the situation.

Before Ichigo could stagger out of his chair to run after her, he felt an intense, dark reiatsu pin him down. Turning around, he was further astonished to see the Cuatro Espada standing only a few yards away, his raven black hair casting a shadow on his face emphasizing the rage his emerald glare held.

"Ulquiorra…," Ichigo managed to murmur.

Ulquiorra continued to stare at him, his black lips barely moving as he spoke.

"Your indecisiveness will be her ruin, Kurosaki Ichigo."

Before Ichigo could retort, Ulquiorra had vanished along with any trace of his reiatsu.

It all seemed so surreal to Ichigo. He was no longer an adolescent teen. He was a man and it was about time he settled things. He should have realized that Orihime would never let their bond wither and that Orihime would stay by his side through thick and thin.

As for Ulquiorra being there after Orihime left, was that a coincidence? Has he been stalking her? Ichigo could only trust that Orihime would be able to protect herself or at least rely on him, but apparently the latter option would only upset her more.

He just didn't want her to be sad anymore. Though it seemed he wasn't the only one watching over her.

* * *

Orihime stumbled around as she walked on the path back to her home. Avoiding the curious stares of strangers that she passed by, she tried to hide her tear-streaked face and muffled the sounds of her nasal congestion. In addition to her misery, she sneezed loudly, causing snot to drip from her nose irrepressibly.

_Great, now I'm sick_.

"Today really, really sucks," she whispered to herself. Too busy drowning in self-pity and her own tears, she was unaware of Ulquiorra's dark presence following her as he jumped from building to building. Watching the girl stagger around, he wanted to make sure she would make it home safely without tripping on her own feet and injuring herself.

_My heart hurts so much_…

The memory of Ulquiorra kissing her under the light of the stars reemerged from her subconscious. The pain in her chest slightly subsided, but it was still aching. Immediately after the sweet memory vanished, she recalled the image of Ulquiorra being embraced by another woman and secured against the hotel walls with her shapely body and her lips.

_Oh that's right… Ulquiorra kissed that woman too_…

Suddenly, Orihime felt a strange reiatsu clamber towards her direction while she walked.

Both Ulquiorra and Orihime turned their heads to the direction of the intruder and their questions were answered by the ominous howling of a Hollow.

The monster raised its masked head up towards the blue sky and howled louder, hungry for power and dominance. It swerved its dark eyes towards Orihime, sensing her spiritual potential. Judging by its large, lizard-like body and its feathered wings, Orihime knew it was only a low-level Hollow, but she didn't put her guard down. It continued to crawl towards her, toxic-green tentacle arms excreting a slime that burned any living thing it touched.

Ulquiorra examined the Hollow and then looked back towards Orihime. He could sense that the girl was hesitating and her eyes were wide with surprise, but he refused to underestimate her like Kurosaki Ichigo had done.

The Cuatro Espada felt for the hilt of his Murcielago at his waist, but ended up touching the fabric of his pants instead. Cursing under his breath, he recalled that he could only use his sword with the approval of Soul Society. He pulled out his phone instead and prepared to send a text message, but he felt lost while staring at the keypad, realizing he didn't know how to send a text message. He snapped his head towards Orihime anxiously, but he knew that if she would ever be in trouble, he would rather risk his life for her.

For a fleeting second, Orihime wondered if Ichigo would be nearby to save her before she could do anything, but realizing that she was tired of that scenario, she placed her pale fingertips on her collar where her hairpins rested dormant. Gaining her resolve and strength, she raised her arms outwards, her eyes burning with determination.

_I'll protect these people_, she thought. She could feel her weakness fading. She knew what to do.

_I'll protect these people. I'll protect Kurosaki-kun. I'll protect Ulquiorra. And most of all, I'll protect myself_.

The Hollow was now a few yards away from her, flapping its large, feathered wings to lift itself up into the air. The sudden gush of wind frightened and startled the people surrounding Orihime and the invisible hollow, giving Orihime enough room for a battle.

The Hollow, now flying in the air, reared its head up in one final roar, hunger and sorrow mixed within its voice. It pulled a tentacle back, posing to launch an attack Orihime supposed would contain poison.

"Koten… Zanshun!" She yelled, ignoring the hushed whispers of the crowd around her.

Swiftly, she grabbed her mock zanpakutou and launched it towards the Hollow above her. Tsubaki sliced one of its tentacles off, causing it to recoil in pain and emit a louder howl of agony. Knotting her eyebrows in concentration, she retrieved her weapon in her hand and posed for another attack. The Hollow regained its composure and hissed at her. Flapping its wings once more and folding the mass of feathers behind its back, it leaned forward and went for a nose dive towards Orihime.

Orihime's vivid, fiery hair whipped behind her as the sudden gush of wind pummeled through her, but she kept her stance steady. Instead of running back to earn her more room, she stood her ground and did something else with the manifestation of light in her hands. Using both hands, she concentrated Tsubaki's power into a sphere. Looking straight above her, she raised her hands up, along with her newfound ability, and released it.

Ulquiorra was speechless. The girl had just manifested something similar to a Hollow's cero. Maybe even a Cero Oscuras.

The silent Espada covered his green eyes with a sleeved arm to block out the bright surge of yellow light that emitted from the impact of Orihime's attack and the Hollow. As the light faded, he slowly lowered his arm and watched as the Hollow's ashes drifted to the ground, surrounding Orihime like black ash. Her face was dark and her hair a mess, but gray eyes were sparkling with silent victory.

_She was truly interesting_.

It wasn't the fact that Orihime had just finished a low level Hollow. No, Ulquiorra knew her powers had much more potential than that. Instead it was how she executed her strength. She was quick, determined, brilliant, and _beautiful_. He felt overwhelmed with pride for the girl.

All of a sudden, Orihime swayed on her feet, exhausted from the uncontrolled use of her powers, and Ulquiorra was there in an instant to catch her before she fell.

"Onna, it seems I can't teach you to walk by leaving you alone," he taunted. Ulquiorra fought the urge to smile at the girl in his arms.

Orihime slowly tilted her head back and smiled sadly at him.

"Ulquiorra…," Orihime stabilized her position by herself, her back turned towards Ulquiorra, and entwined her fingers together behind her back. She threw her head back and gave him a bright smile, her sweet, brown bangs grazing against her forehead.

"I'm so sorry, Ulquiorra, I'm such an idiot," she continued to smile, but Ulquiorra saw it.

It reflected the light of the autumn day on her cheek. A single tear slid down her face and dripped from her chin to land on her hairpins. Orihime faced forward again, preparing to walk alone, but Ulquiorra wouldn't let this happen twice.

Stretching his arm out, he grabbed the woman's wrist and spun her around to face him. Her eyes were shut in a desperate attempt to stop the flow of tears, strands of red-brown hair adhering to her already wet cheeks.

Impulsively, she rushed into Ulquiorra's arms and buried her head into his cold, hard chest. Ulquiorra could feel her shoulders shuddering as she wept, echoes of pain and rejection echoing through the Hollow hole in his chest.

"It hurts so much, Ulquiorra," she sobbed into his chest. Her tears were soaking his gray shirt; fragile fingers seized the fabric on his back, her desperate embrace suffocating him. Her legs were starting to give out on her and she started to slump down on her knees, but Ulquiorra held her up by her elbow.

"Orihime…," he whispered, his lips grazing against her forehead as he spoke. Her skin was hot, burning his lips and his hands as he touched her. Taking a moment to breathe, she exhaled, then released another heart-wrenching, muffled cry.

Ulquiorra placed a pale hand gently on her head, causing her to look up at him. Face soaked with tears, she managed to smile at him, though her shoulders still quivered in a pitiful manner. He ran his skinny fingers through her auburn hair to soothe her.

Orihime wrapped her arms tighter around him, heat pouring from her body into Ulquiorra's. Warily, Ulquiorra leaned back and slid the hand that rested on her head to cup her cheek. She was burning. At first he thought her face was flushed from her lamentation, but when she emitted a muffled sneeze, his doubts were cleared.

She was sick.

...

Once again, Ulquiorra carried his strong and brilliant princess to her bed. He adjusted the sheets over her, watching her sleeping face contort into an expression of agony. It was different from last night. Tears were overflowing from her closed eyes and her shiny lips slightly parted to aid her in breathing since her sinuses were congested. Watching her in her despair made Ulquiorra feel as though he were experiencing the same sensations she was.

_Is this what the heart does_?

He understood now, but it was too late to give it back.

Ulquiorra turned away and took a step to make his way back to the living room, but a small hand reached out and gripped his wrist desperately. The Espada tilted his head slightly and adjusted his emerald gaze to the frail girl behind him. He watched her lips part once more, barely moving as she spoke in a hushed, weak tone. Ulquiorra couldn't hear her, but he didn't need to.

_Don't leave_.

He placed a bony hand on the warm hand that anchored him to her bedside and removed it.

"How absurd," he deadpanned. All these emotions were tearing him up into nothingness. He only wanted to free himself.

He heard her give off a pathetic whimper in response and he hesitated from looking away. Before he could question his intentions, he found himself unable to resist her request. Crawling over her to take the unoccupied side of her bed, he took a moment to hover over her, his dark figure blocking the light and casting a shadow on her features.

Feebly, her arms wrapped around his torso once again and pulled his body towards her. Their bodies were now pressed together and Ulquiorra had to strain his neck from pressing against her lips. Their legs were tangled together and his arms planted on either side of her head. The bed made a soft creaking noise as Orihime shifted to curl into him.

"Ulquiorra," she breathed out. A warm breath caressed his cheeks and tickled long strands of black hair.

He was starting to grow restless. Having such a beautiful body fill the curves of his own was starting to elicit inappropriate reactions from his body, but he couldn't push himself off. He knew Orihime needed to hold onto him. She was in pain and he was her only consolation. The girl had no family and her best friend had moved away. He was all she had and her heart had just been shattered by the one boy she had placed all her hopes and dreams in. If he continued to be distant from her, the girl might break.

Even though he was a monster, she had accepted him. He was the embodiment of despair, emptiness, and fear and yet she had cured him of his nihility. Ulquiorra felt an overwhelming desire to save her from falling into that same anguish. His emerald eyes softened as he looked down at her delicate face.

And then that moment happened.

Orihime's eyes snapped open and she _heard _him. It was as if Ulquiorra's very body were speaking volumes to her. Passion, grief, and regret leaked from his soul and spilled into her, filling every empty crevice Ichigo had split open in her heart. She felt Ulquiorra relax on top of her, his arms nudging the sheets as he scooped them under her back to hold her. The way Ulquiorra pressed his forehead against hers and kissed the tip of her red nose was a motion that seemed to speak to her the most beautiful words he had ever heard from him:

_I'm sorry_.

It was during that moment that Orihime's empty and broken heart had healed and was now full of the raven-haired Espada who was now brushing his nose along the curve of her cheeks, his lips skimming against her heated skin.

"Are you afraid of me… Orihime?"

"I'm… happy, Ulquiorra."

And she smiled once more. Genuine and pure.

* * *

**I absolutely hate OCs, but I had to put someone in there to make this work out haha.  
I shall assure you that this is NOT the main climax. Aizen has yet to execute his purpose in this story~**  
**Please leave a review! It only takes a few seconds to make this little author very happy!**


	8. The Answer

**Welcome to the 8th Chapter of Just A Bit Longer! Thank you so much for sticking with me this far!**  
**Sorry I haven't posted in... over ten days (gasp)! I've been motivated to work on my new fic Masquerade~**  
**Please check it out if you're into dark romance hehe**

**Also, I didn't thoroughly read for grammar/spelling mistakes so please excuse them if necessary!**  
**Enjoy!**

* * *

Deep within a foreign, thick forest, a certain strawberry-blonde woman yawned as she curled up next to her silver-haired companion. A gentle autumn breeze drifted through the brown and orange leaves above them.

"Gin."

Matsumoto Rangiku rolled on top of her lover, pressing her bare chest against his. He grinned at her and ran his skinny fingers through her hair. She smiled back at him and kissed the area beneath his jaw. With her feet, she lazily pulled the blanket to cover their naked bodies that lay sprawled on the forest floor.

"Yes, Ran?"

"I've always been wondering… why did you ask permission for the Espada to come here?"

Rangiku was referring to the Living World. Since Gin was exiled from Soul Society and Rangiku had no access to a garganta, the two star-crossed lovers would occasionally rendezvous in the Living World deep in a forest that reminded her of the first place she met him when they were children.

Gin's smirk stretched wider, his aqua eyes squinting at her as the afternoon sunlight beamed through the clouds and rested on his face.

"I can't tell you, Rangiku."

"Booooo, Gin!" she whined, tucking her head underneath his pointy chin, "You always hide things from me!"

Again, he ran a hand through her gold waves of hair, admiring the feeling of silk at the tips of his fingers. His smile turned upside-down into a frown. It wasn't that he wanted to keep his plans a secret from the woman he loved, but everything he did was for her. It always had been. And he couldn't afford to slip up.

"I'm sorry, Ran," his eyebrows knotted in concern as he said the next part, "But if it makes you feel better… You will probably find out soon."

Rangiku snapped her head up to look at him and glowed at him, her blue eyes wide with excitement, "Really, Gin? Really, really?" she chirped.

Gin's frown deepened, "Really."

If his predictions were correct, Aizen Sosuke would break out of his confinements any time now. _Five years_…

"Ran, I have a favor to ask of you."

"What is it?" her bright, azure eyes held curiosity and anxiety upon seeing his expression grow serious.

"Smile, Ran," he poked her cheek teasingly. She laughed and grabbed his hand, intertwining their fingers together.

"Promise me."

It was moments like this that came crashing upon her whenever Gin left her. A wave of nostalgia and heartache constantly nibbled at her soul, making her breathless and depressed. Fortunately, she was a strong woman. She could smile, but she could never forget. Unless she drank sake of course.

Gin opened his eyes, his undiluted blue eyes piercing through her intensely.

"Promise me… you won't leave me anymore," her voice cracked as she talked.

This was it. This was what Gin didn't want to see. He never wanted her to cry ever again. But if his plans were successful, both their wishes might just be granted.

Gin could only hope the Espada he had laid his trust in had adjusted to the Living World accordingly.

He pushed her shoulders back gently and laid her on the soft grass. Hovering over her, his silver hair brushing against her skin, he laid soft, warm kisses on her cheek, trailing down to her breasts. She giggled in response, feeling his touches tickle her. She pulled her legs up and captured his nude waist with them, then pulled him towards her to press his groin against her lower abdomen. He raised his eyebrows in amusement at her silent request and chuckled softly.

"I wouldn't dream of it, Ran."

…

Meanwhile in the lowest underground prison, the 8th prison known as "Muken", Sosuke Aizen himself grinned widely. The entire room was pulsating with an eerie light as the Hogyoku within him pulsated power into his veins and arteries. He felt the Kidou that bound him gradually melt away into useless liquid around his fingers, shoulders, and head.

'_The Hogyoku is very impatient_,' he mused to himself, '_Though, that isn't entirely true. It is fulfilling my desires after all_.'

He felt his restraints loosen around him even further. Flexing his arms and stretching his legs, he savored every sensation of power and strength seep back into him from the jewel embedded in his chest.

…

It truly was a strange sight. A human girl and a demon were cuddling in the same bed. The soft afternoon sunlight leaked through the girl's window blinds, resting on the tangled mess of ebony and auburn strands splayed on the same pillow. It was silent except for the heavenly, shallow breathing of an angel and her masculine counterpart. Their limbs were intertwined as they hugged each other in a heated embrace. The boy's arm wrapped securely around his princess and the girl's nose pressed snugly against his hard chest, right below where his heart should be.

Sometime during their afternoon nap, Ulquiorra had awoken, yet again, by Orihime's restlessness. Gradually opening bold, forest-green eyes and tilting his head to the side to look at her, he observed that the girl was drowning in the cold sweat of her fever. Despite the heat that emanated from her breath and radiated off her skin, she was shivering violently and clinging onto him desperately for warmth.

Orihime's eyes fluttered open, only opening halfway due to her faintness. Ulquiorra shifted the arm that rested below her breasts to caress her cheek and lull her back to sleep. Obliging, Orihime closed her eyes once more.

"I'm so cold, Ulquiorra," she whispered. She tugged on his shirt twice trying to motion to Ulquiorra what she wanted.

Without hesitation, Ulquiorra removed his hand from her cheek placed her trembling hand on his tie. She tilted her head up, her nose just a few centimeters away from the Espada's.

"Show me what you want, Orihime," he sighed softly into her ear.

Orihime opened her eyes widely in shock, comprehending what he had meant. Her hands hovered over his tie in hesitation and she bit her bottom lip, but eventually she placed her feeble fingers and loosened his tie. Ulquiorra's eyes shifted down to look at her as she tried to unbutton his shirt. He felt amusement tugging at the corner of his lips, urging him to smirk, as he watched her mouth twist in concentration in trying to pry the buttons of his shirt apart with difficulty. Gently he placed a pale hand on her trembling fingers and pressed his forehead against hers. He relished in her warmth and the sweet smell of her hair.

"You don't have to do it if you don't want to, Orihime," he murmured, his lips grazing against her nose.

Orihime's face grew so hot, she felt as though she would faint, but when she managed to free one button, her resolution had settled.

"I want to," she whispered.

Despite the blush evident on her face, she was still shivering uncontrollably from her fever. She was cold and a different type of hunger was gnawing at her heart. She knew Ulquiorra would be the only one that could satisfy her needs.

She _wanted_ him.

He filled the emptiness in her heart just as she had done for him. Now she desperately thirsted for him. Skin, soul, and body. Orihime was sure he felt the same way. She could feel it in the heat of Ulquiorra's hand, she could hear it rebounding in his voice, and most of all, his ember-green eyes, which looked at her now, were filled with passion and care she had never seen before.

Ulquiorra released his grip on her hands and placed it on her hip, encouraging her to continue. Shyly, Orihime unbuttoned one more, occasionally looking up into his emerald gaze for approval, but found him to be as apathetic as ever. Little did she know that Ulquiorra was having trouble maintaining his composure as the girl in his arms gradually undressed him. He tangled the fabric of her light, autumn dress in between his fingers as eager and greed threatened to consume him.

Earlier, Orihime had kicked the sheets away, giving Ulquiorra full sight of her curvaceous body. Clutching the thin fabric even tighter in his pale hand, the dress lifted higher, exposing a delicious amount of her thigh. Upon further contact with the cold air in her room on her skin, Orihime inhaled sharply, but quietly, and arched her body even closer to Ulquiorra. Ulquiorra had to use all his strength to refrain his body from reacting inappropriately, but he knew that when it came to Orihime, his body would prevail over his mind.

On releasing the last button of his shirt, Orihime slid her arms up from his abdomen to his shoulders, delicately separating his shirt and slipping it off his shoulders to expose his broad chest and throbbing Hollow hole.

Growling with approval, he tilted his head lower and nuzzled Orihime's chin upward to expose her neck. She shyly gave into his silent request, closed her eyes, and gasped quietly when she felt Ulquiorra's cold lips settle on her neck. She curved into the shape of his body and pressed her breasts against his chest. The heat radiating off of him did everything but quell the shivering of her excited body. Her heart hammered loudly in her chest and she suddenly felt embarrassed.

Orihime weaved her bare legs with Ulquiorra's, her abdomen brushing against his groin. Immediately, Ulquiorra felt that uncomfortable heat growing exponentially from his lower abdomen and his body stiffened.

Tentatively, she placed both her palms around his hollow hole. Orihime tilted her head lower causing Ulquiorra's lingering lips to graze up her jawbone and tickle her cheek and then her forehead. Timidly, she pressed her lips at the corner of the aching hole. Ulquiorra winced underneath her touch.

"Am I hurting you…?" she whispered. With every word, her lips brushed against his velvet skin, sending waves of pleasure and pain all at once throughout his body.

Ulquiorra loosened his grasp on her hip and placed it on her cheek to gently angle her chin up once more. He lowered his lips onto her warm neck and licked her skin, causing her to tremble in delight.

"Orihime," he breathed out, closing his eyes.

Orihime sighed and wandered her hands up past his shoulders and curled them around his neck, her fingers combing through raven-black hair. She noticed Ulquiorra avoided her question, but she expected that he would since it would be out of character for him. Emitting a tired giggle, she smiled into his hair.

"I like it when you say my name, Ulquiorra."

"Orihime…Orihime…Orihime…" between every sigh of her name, Ulquiorra placed feathery kisses on her jawbone, collarbone, and the area right above her heart.

Orihime had never felt so complete. At first, it seemed strange to have her heart full of the dark Espada Ulquiorra Cifer, but with every touch of his gentle fingers and his coarse lips, and with every inch that joined them together as they lay in bed, Orihime started to feel familiar with him. She loved how it seemed Ulquiorra knew how to console her and yet make her feel as though she would burst. Five years ago, she could have never seen this day coming.

Would it be too late to turn back now?

Orihime couldn't imagine leaving him.

She hugged him tighter in response, savoring the feeling of his satin lips on her tender skin. She made a strange reaction when he kissed the skin that throbbed above her heart.

"Sleep, Orihime."

She nodded against his head and drifted back to sleep to dream about a certain dark-haired prince.

...

_Ring_.

Ulquiorra felt Orihime stir next to him and groan in complaint. He snapped his eyes open on sensing a familiar reiatsu.

"Just a bit longer…" she grumbled into his chest, tightening her embrace.

_Ring_. _Ring_.

The caramel-brown haired girl groaned even louder in his arms and shifted her body so that she would be lying sprawled on her back. Ulquiorra leaned over and brushed her hair clear from her face.

The Arrancar could sense the foreign reiatsu heighten in anxiety the longer he procrastinated on answering the door. Much to Orihime's discomfort, he removed himself from the girl that persisted on gluing herself to him. Climbing out of the bed, he didn't bother fixing himself up before walking to the door and opening it.

At the other side of the door, a blue-eyed Quincy sighed in exasperation. He was about to turn away from the door, when it slammed open unceremoniously revealing a half-dressed, disheveled Espada.

"Ulquiorra?!" Uryuu shouted in disbelief. _Why the hell is he half-naked_?

"Do not be so noisy, Quincy. It's quite annoying and the girl is sleeping," he deadpanned.

Uryuu was stunned. He was aware Ulquiorra was staying with Orihime, but he didn't expect the Arrancar to be this comfortable with her. He couldn't help but wonder what he had interrupted.

"Err…" he sweat-dropped.

"State your reason for appearing here, Quincy," Ulquiorra demanded. He longed to return to Orihime in bed.

Uryuu furrowed his brow, "I haven't seen Orihime in a while. I just wanted to check up on he—"

"—The onna is perfectly capable of taking care of herself," he interrupted, "If that is the only reason you are here for, I suggest you leave now and let the girl rest."

"Is something wrong with her?" Uryuu grew more worried.

"I assure you she will live," he responded vaguely and slammed the door on him.

Irritated, Uryuu blinked hard and started to slam on the door with his fists.

"I demand to see Orihime! What have you done to her?!" he shouted at the door as he banged on it insistently.

The door responded to him with a click as the lock was put in place.

Uryuu was really peeved now. He pulled out his sewing kit from his coat, picked at the door's lock just like he did five years ago, but paused before he could unlock it. Sighing, he withdrew the pick and stepped away from the door. His Quincy pride wouldn't allow him to stoop this low. He decided he would pay another visit later when Orihime would be awake to open the door instead.

…

Back in the room, Ulquiorra sauntered over to Orihime's bedside with his hands in her pocket. The girl rolled over on the bed to face him and looked up at his dark face.

"Who was that, Ulquiorra?" she slurred at him sleepily.

"Just trash, onna," he said humorlessly. Looking at Ulquiorra's face, Orihime decided not to pry.

Ulquiorra's green eyes softened when he watched her reach out to him eagerly with both arms outstretched. He bent over and allowed himself to be taunted by her inviting warmth. Wrapping him in her embrace, she tugged his body over hers on the bed, welcoming his presence back into her life. He in turn wrapped his arms under her back and rolled over so that she was now on top.

Drowsily, the girl giggled cheerfully at him, her nose crinkling to hold back a sneeze.

"Ulquiorra," she beamed. She placed a curious finger on his cheek and traced the line of his tear marks.

"Yes, Orihime?" he closed his eyes and sighed softly as he leaned his head into the palm of her hand.

She lowered her head onto his chest, her ear resting into his hollow hole. Her smile slipped from her face and her vision became cloudy with tears. Her other hand roamed and outlined the curves of Ulquiorra's torso.

"Do you think this is okay?"

"Is what okay?"

"This. What we're doing… I… don't want to seem like I'm using you as a rebound…" she sniffled quietly into his chest.

"Rebound?" He felt her nod against his chest, her soft cheek rubbing against his gaping hole.

"A rebound is someone a broken-hearted person relies on to fill the emptiness in their hearts," her shoulders started to quake as her tears silently poured, "I feel so guilty, Ulquiorra. About everything."

Ulquiorra rested his hand on her head and ran his fingers through golden-fiery strands.

"I assure you, onna, that no matter how you view me, I will not leave your side. That is my own will, not yours."

Ulquiorra expected her to be happy when he said this, but instead she curled up into a ball on top of him and began sobbing loudly. Stunned by her reaction, he leaned up and pushed Orihime into a sitting position in his lap. She continued to cry, desperately wiping her tears from her face over and over again as she bawled.

"Why, Ulquiorra? I really liked Kurosaki-kun! Being here with you now… like this… I can't help, but wonder why it's you and not him. Kurosaki-kun… I feel so guilty, Ulquiorra," she cried into his chest, her voice leaking through his hollow hole.

Ulquiorra felt a pang of jealousy course through him. His mouth tightened into a straight line and he looked down at the girl pouring her emotions into him. He placed his hands on her shoulder and pushed her off of him. Orihime snapped her eyes open and her heart felt as though it were being shred to pieces. Ember-green eyes glared right into her iron-gray orbs, his brow furrowed in frustration.

"Inoue Orihime," he rasped. Orihime sniffled, her eyes widening from the intensity of his gaze.

"You are strong. You have the abilities that defy God's Will and a heart so pure. Kurosaki Ichigo is a fool for taking advantage of you," he continued. His gaze softened and Orihime felt his clutch on her shoulders relax, "Now will you seize with this pathetic act?"

Orihime wiped her nose with the back of her arm and smiled goofily at him.

"I'm sorry," she laughed, "I think I'm near my period. I should feel better soon though!"

Ulquiorra didn't know what a "period" was, but he decided to inquire about that later.

Swelling with happiness, guilt, and bittersweet sadness, she smiled and pushed Ulquiorra's shoulders back slightly so their eyes would be level. She felt the heart in her chest flutter as she gazed at him. Lowering her lashes, she leaned in towards Ulquiorra.

"Do you…like me, Ulquiorra?"

"Like?" he scoffed.

She nodded vigorously, her blush becoming more evident on her face. She grabbed his hand and placed it on her chest right where her heart was pumping rapidly.

"This is what happens when you like somebody," she said, turning even more red realizing how sappy she was being.

Ulquiorra looked at his hand curiously. Underneath his fingers was Orihime's heart, alive and warm. It was a mysterious sensation to someone who had a gaping hole at that same location. He pressed his palm further into her chest and felt her fast, pulsating beats resonating through his cold blood and run through his chest as if he had a heart too.

She was his heart. He already discovered that. But now it seemed so much more.

What could it be?

Orihime freed his hand from hers and Ulquiorra withdrew it, staring at it as the feeling of her pulse faded out of him.

"Ulquiorra, can I try something?"

Ulquiorra continued to wordlessly gape at his hand. Orihime took his silence as an approval and she prayed to God he wouldn't regret allowing her to do what she was about to do next.

Her focus slid down from his eyes and rested on his lips as her trembling fingers reached for his face. Timidly, she leaned in and closed her eyes while Ulquiorra's eyes widened surprise, unflinching. He watched as her face neared his and he also felt heat rising to his face. Her unsure fingers roamed past his neck and tangled themselves in his long, black hair while she lifted her body slightly to place her lips on Ulquiorra's.

Speechless, Ulquiorra continued to stare at her closed eyes as she kissed him. Finally regaining his composure, he closed his eyes and leaned into Orihime to return the gesture. He felt her lips turn into a smile under his as he placed both his hands on her lower back to support her. Eagerly, she angled her head so she could kiss him again and he sighed against her lips. Then Orihime did something that caught him off guard.

When Ulquiorra sighed, she courageously licked his bottom lip sensually. She felt Ulquiorra twitch in her embrace, but she calmed him with another kiss, her touch melting him into nothingness. Orihime nibbled on his bottom lip, causing him to slightly part his lips to emit a low growl. She licked his bottom lip again, asking for approval. Consenting to her request, he parted his lips more and let Orihime caress his mouth from inside with her tongue. Every flick of her tongue that battled with his shot pleasure through him that pooled in his stomach.

The sensation was overwhelming him. When her tongue slid against his, he couldn't restrain himself back anymore. Grabbing the girl's arms roughly, Ulquiorra pushed her onto her back on the bed and he continued to ravish her tongue passionately. Their bodies were so close together, every inch of one body touched the other. One heart beating rapidly and the other aching and throbbing in hunger.

Everything about Ulquiorra was alluring. His low, seductive grunts, the musky scent of his masculinity, the way his body hovered over hers dominantly. His touch was scorching hot, but his breath was cold and gentle.

Orihime curled her fingers into his hair, deepening the kiss. Ulquiorra felt her legs wrap around his waist and her thighs brush against his causing her dress to fall in a pool around her rear, exposing her creamy thighs. He knew his groin was reacting shamelessly, but he could no longer limit himself. He felt Orihime arch into him and moan inside his mouth. Her lower abdomen rubbed against his, arousing him even further. Her breathing became labored as she explored his bare back with slender fingers. He couldn't refrain himself from touching her either; his own hands disobeyed his mind and traveled from her arms to the area underneath her supple breasts and her flat stomach.

It was blissful torture to Ulquiorra. He knew he had to stop himself before his body would betray him and he would terrify the innocent girl beneath him.

Ulquiorra took a few moments to relish in the waves of ecstasy from her grinding into him lustfully and listened to the desire woven in her uneven breaths. He had never yearned so strongly to be with her, but when he felt his body reach its limit of arousal, he flinched away before Orihime could feel it.

Sitting back on his legs, he stared at the girl beneath him, her hair a mess of red and brown coating the cluttered sheets. Her eyes were glazed over and directed towards the ceiling, her chest rising and falling in rhythm with his unsteady pants.

Sluggishly, her large, gray eyes wandered to him and she reached out and tugged on his arm to pull him back on her. Ulquiorra obliged once more and hovered over her, his dark hair casting a shadow on both their faces. Urgently, she draped her arms around his neck once more, a look of need cast on her features.

"Calm down, Orihime," he said in a low voice.

The girl was burning beneath him. He knew he shouldn't leave her as she was, but he didn't want to hurt her. He was afraid she might regret choosing him. After all, he was only a rebound, but he was determined to play his role to the best of his ability.

Orihime had reduced the Cuatro Espada into a weakling. He was under her command and even declared he would follow her no matter what her intentions would be. Though, Ulquiorra realized it would be acceptable when it came to this girl. He understood that she had become a part of him. In a way, the human made him stronger. If they were to part, Ulquiorra was sure he would fall back into the abyss of despair.

Their intense, fixated gaze on each other was interrupted, yet again, by the ringing of her doorbell.

Orihime giggled, and feeling suddenly lethargic, flopped back down on her sheets and dragged a pillow over to cuddle with it.

"Can you get that, Ulquiorra? I'm still sick," she muffled into the pillow.

Ulquiorra almost scoffed aloud, knowing through Orihime's actions that she was no longer under the spell of a fever, but he got off the bed anyway and headed towards the door. Stuffing his hands into his pockets as he neared the door, he felt the fluctuating reiatsu of the shinigami. He hesitated in front of the closed door, debating if Orihime were mentally stable enough to face him in her current condition. Unhurriedly, he removed a hand from his pocket and opened the door. Both Kurosaki Ichigo and Ishida Uryuu were standing at the doorway.

Ulquiorra glowered at them. Ichigo had his hands in his pockets and his angry eyes were averted to the side.

"Is Inoue-san awake yet?" Uryuu started, gawking at Ulquiorra who seemed more disheveled than the last time he visited.

"No," Ulquiorra stepped back to slam the door on their faces again, but Ichigo stuck his foot out in between the door and the frame before it could close.

"I need to talk to Orihime," he snarled. Ulquiorra reopened the door, but his expression remained stoic.

"You call her by her first name so suddenly after she points it out to you? How ridiculous."

Ulquiorra and Ichigo glared at each other for a few seconds, invisible sparks flying as a flustered Uryuu tried to calm Ichigo down to no avail.

"Ulquiorra? Who is tha— oh!" Orihime peeked over his shoulder and immediately withdrew to hide behind his back.

Ulquiorra tilted his head back to look at the cowering girl and noticed she changed into large t-shirt and tight, spandex shorts and her hairpins were placed to keep rogue strands away from her small face, but her eyes were still puffy from her crying fits. He sighed inwardly and shifted his gaze to Ichigo.

"She's not ready to see you, shinigami. Leave," he demanded.

"Umm, it's okay," he felt Orihime peek around his shoulder this time, her eyes cast downwards in shyness.

"Orihime, I want to talk to you," Ichigo declared, looking at her now, but she refused to look at him in his eyes. Uryuu stood there awkwardly, hearing from Ichigo what had happened between them earlier and in exchange Uryuu revealed that Ulquiorra had been living with Orihime.

Orihime tugged at Ulquiorra's sleeve and he understood that she was asking him to lend her strength.

Ichigo switched his gaze to Ulquiorra and his amber eyes hardened, "Why the hell are you _naked_?"

Then, out of nowhere, Orihime's stomach rumbled noisily and ended with a sound similar to a spring. All three pairs of blue, brown, and green eyes stared at her intensely and she felt herself shrink.

"Ah!" she blinked, "I guess I'm hungry!" and then laughed awkwardly.

"Good! Then let me take you out again, Orihime," Ichigo persisted. Ulquiorra saw her visibly flinch when she heard him say her name informally for the second time. Ulquiorra's face darkened.

"Orihime is ill, shinigami. Were you not aware of her symptoms when you were out with her earlier? Or were you too busy thinking about yourself?" he sneered.

Ichigo glowered at him, "Now who are you to say you could call her by her first name?!" he yelled, "I've known her longer than you! You can't just take control of her li—"

"Stop! Kurosaki-kun…" Orihime withered. Uryuu looked at her with pity. The poor girl did indeed look sick and after all Ichigo had put her through, he wouldn't blame her for feeling worse.

Uryuu placed a hand on Ichigo's shoulder, "Lets go, Ichigo. Just leave her to rest. I'm sure she will be fine."

Ichigo clenched his fists between his sides, lowered his head, and gritted his teeth.

"I never wanted to hurt you, Orihime," he muttered.

Orihime realized Ichigo had come to her just to make his rejection clear. When she felt her heart couldn't be any more broken, it felt as though Ichigo had stepped on the shards with those words. Frankly, she was impressed that he managed to directly confront her about it without Rukia this time, but it did nothing to settle her spirit.

Orihime smiled sadly, "I know… Kurosaki-kun."

Without another word, Orihime shut the door and locked it in place.

So that was it. Ichigo and Orihime would continue to live on as friends. After six years of unrequited love, she had received her answer. Ulquiorra would pity her, but he felt no such emotion. If anything, he felt anger and relief, but he wouldn't admit to that.

Auburn strands of hair covered her face as she lowered her head and leaned back against the door. Ulquiorra could hear her muted sniffles and quiet hiccups. Not knowing how to sympathize or console her at this point, his frown deepened.

"Onna," he paused for a moment wondering what the hell he was thinking, but continued anyway, "Do you want me to retrieve you a meal?"

Orihime lifted her head and looked at him with enormous, sparkling eyes. If she were crying, any evidence had been immediately evaporated.

"Are you really going to cook for me, Ulquiorra?!" she screamed enthusiastically. Ulquiorra had to cover his ears. His face darkened, displeased.

"I was referring to procuring a bento from the convenient store," he said plainly.

Orihime wilted, "Ah… Well then, why don't you try cooking? I'll teach you!"

Cooking… Ulquiorra could imagine that it was a hobby only weaklings found pleasure in.

"No."

"Ulquioooorraaaa!" she whined, beating on his hard chest with her fists.

Suddenly, she let her legs give way and she collapsed on to floor in a heap, intentionally breathing shallowly. Opening her eyes marginally, she peeked to see if Ulquiorra was concerned, but he was just staring down at her stoically. Maybe she didn't look pitiful enough…

"Onna, what are you doing?"

"Ulquiorra…" she grated with a dry, scratchy voice, "I'm so… sick… I need… food"

Ulquiorra's eye involuntarily twitched. The woman was insulting his intelligence.

"Cook it yourself then."

"…weak…" her head fell upon the carpet in defeat.

Ulquiorra sighed internally, closing his eyes as a vein popped at his temple.

"Fine, Orihime. Teach me this… 'cooking'."

…

To Orihime, it seemed Ulquiorra was a prodigy when it came to cooking. He was swift and efficient, precise with his measurements, and had a knack for knowing what ingredient was needed despite the fact he didn't know the names of more than half of them. Ulquiorra switched off the gas for the stove upon completion.

"No, Ulquiorra! I want this!"

"Onna, that does not compliment this. To accentuate the flavor you must—"

"Nooo!" she continued to whine while reaching for the chocolate syrup that Ulquiorra was suspending high above his head, away from her grasp.

"I want Chocoyaki!"

"Is that Yakisoba or…"

"It's Chocoyaki! Chocoyaki! Chocoyaki!"

Ulquiorra mouth twitched in aggravation. His creation was perfect. He didn't want to soil it with Orihime's strange taste, though the girl insisted that he pour a bottle of chocolate syrup in the concoction. As she jumped to reach the bottle, her breasts rubbed up against his chest repeatedly.

He had enough of this nonsense.

Abruptly, he shifted the bottle over Orihime's head and compressed it within his strong hand, causing it to explode all over her. She gasped and stared at him with wide eyes as the syrup coated her hair and cover her nose and cheeks in a sticky mess. Ulquiorra tossed the damaged bottle over her head and into the trash can across the kitchen.

"Ul…Ul…Ul…" her wide eyes started to glisten with tears as she whimpered.

Ulquiorra was taken aback. He almost felt regret and guilt, but he remained cool. The girl had forgotten that he took no orders from anyone. He was the fourth Espada of Aizen and, technically, now the second. He glowered above her, his face dark with ill intentions.

"You wasted it! Now I can't have Chocoyaki!" she hurled herself at him.

Caught by surprise, she successfully knocked him over, sending both of their bodies crashing to the floor. Angrily, Orihime glared at him as she sat on top of him. She brought both her fists up and dropped them onto his chest and began to repeatedly beat him with them.

"Y-you suck!" she screamed as she pounded her fists harder on his chest. Syrup was slowly dribbling down her nose and landing on his bare chest.

The dark-haired Espada was fully aware of her rear sitting on top of his groin and as her arms flailed in the air, her hips shifted, grinding on him sensually. Ulquiorra gritted his teeth to regain control on his urges, but the fact that Orihime was on top of him only spurred the desire within him.

With rapid speed, he grabbed her wrists to stop her and pinned her down onto the floor, the shadow of his figure cast over her shocked face. She gasped loudly when Ulquiorra leaned down to lick the syrup that coated her cheek, his hands slid down from her wrists to cup her chin and angle it upwards so he could taste the sweetness of her skin on her neck. Orihime weaved nimble fingers through his dark hair as she raised her hips to press against his. Before Ulquiorra could stop himself, he groaned against her neck, savoring the feeling of pressure on an intimate part of him. His brow creased in mild concentration as he continued to clean her face free of the sticky substance while Orihime lifted her legs to wind around him. He was starting to like the taste of chocolate.

Ulquiorra wondered for a moment if she were trying to kill him by putting him through such torture.

"Orihime," he rasped. He was quickly losing the strength that kept his sanity intact with every graze of her hips against his.

She giggled underneath him and pressed his head lower to have his lips meet hers. His viridian eyes widened in surprise as a jolt of electricity ran through him as they touched. Eventually, his entire body relaxed, molding into the shape of hers as he returned her kiss.

To Orihime, being with Ulquiorra now was absolutely amazing. To think he was once her cold, emotionless caretaker who had harmed her friends (or tried to). Now, almost a human, he was planting a small trail of kisses from her forehead down to the tip of her nose. Smiling at him, her silver eyes sparkling with joy, she slipped her hand out of his long, ebony hair and rested it on his, tangling their fingers together. Gently, she pulled his hand up to have him cup her round, supple breast. Still beaming at him, she enjoyed watching his emotionless face turn to one of surprise, nameless sensations swirling in his deep, green eyes.

It was at that moment that Ulquiorra had understood. She had accepted him and now she was inviting him.

"I trust you, Ulquiorra," she said. '_The food can wait_.'

Before he realized it, human emotions welled up inside him and he felt the tips his fingers, which were entwined with hers, tingle.

Hungrily, he caught her mouth with his and she responded just as greedily. She parted her lips only to lick his bottom lip for permission. Submitting to her, he allowed her to taste him inside his mouth as their tongues battled for dominance. Heat started to radiate stronger from their bodies, suffocating them and drowning them in lust. Ulquiorra pressed his hips harder on hers, making her moan softly in his mouth. Wanting more pressure, she tightened the embrace around his waist with her legs and released her restraint on his hands and slid them to the small of his bare back to push him down even further.

Ulquiorra growled in response, squeezing a large breast in his hand lustfully. She inhaled sharply from the foreign touch, breaking away from the kiss to gaze into his wide emerald eyes. The sound of Orihime's moans was intoxicating to him and only spurred him to go farther. He wasn't sure if the girl felt the same way, but looking into her eyes, he could see lust and desire swimming in those silver pools. Her cheeks were covered with droplets of liquid chocolate along with a faint blush. Reluctantly, he shifted his hand away from her body and placed it beside her on the floor to support him.

She undid her legs around his waist and brought her hands up to cover her mouth as she tried to stifle a giggle. Chocolate syrup had mixed with auburn and caramel strands of hair, tangling it into a fiery mess framing her on the floor. Ulquiorra's eyes softened as he watched her smile happily.

"I…" she started to blush profusely, "I'm going to take a shower. This syrup is ruining my hair."

To Ulquiorra's confusion, she averted her eyes and refused to look at him while she fidgeted nervously underneath him. He removed himself from her, allowing her to sit up though she still wasn't looking at him.

'_I can't believe I'm about to say this, but…_' she squeezed her eyes shut. After years of sexual frustration, it wasn't as if Ulquiorra was the only one trying to contain his desires. Being so close to him and having his hard, muscled body press against her breasts and her abdomen was irresistible.

"W-would you like to join me?"

Again, the girl had managed to surprise him. He stared at her wordlessly for a few seconds. Orihime opened an eye to look at him, but he was just as expressionless as always.

"I mean, y-you haven't showered y-yet… Oh! And I got some chocolate on you."

"I can go after you," he deadpanned. He really didn't want to go through any more of this torture. Having her naked body so close to his… he might just be brought to his knees by his urges.

Orihime's face flushed a bright red, "I-I-I…," she couldn't control her quivering voice.

Ulquiorra sighed inwardly. He couldn't deny that their relationship was going at an extremely fast pace and he worried that the girl would only regret it later. But he was also aware that the longer he spent time with her, the more vulnerable he was to succumb to his lust. And apparently hers also. The moment was inevitable. Two young adults living together, broken and empty, filled only with the presence of each other; it was to be expected.

"Are you still ill?" was all he asked.

"Um," she raised the back of her palm to her forehead as if she could discern her status that way, "I think I'm a lot better. A bit groggy, but my nos—"

Orihime stopped talking suddenly as she felt Ulquiorra cool hand touch her neck, his fingers brushing against her skin, "Your fever has subsided."

Ulquiorra scooped her up in his arms and stood up, eliciting a startled shock from her. Unable to hold back, he used sonido to arrive at the bathroom and shut the door behind him with a foot since his hands were occupied with her weight. Gently putting her down, Orihime's face continued to grow a shade of red in shyness. Bashfully, she placed her hands on his chest and shut her eyes, biting her bottom lip in anticipation.

Understand her body language, Ulquiorra's hands hesitated at his sides before he slowly gripped the fabric of her shirt.

"You won't… regret this," he meant to inquire the question, but he almost didn't want to know the answer. He felt her nod against his chest.

Swiftly, he pushed her off of him and pinned her against the bathroom wall, pressing his lips on hers more roughly. His hands wandered underneath her shirt and she gasped against his lips when she felt his cool hands touch her hot skin. With her lips apart, he slipped his tongue inside to taste the sweetness that coated her tongue. As Orihime fought for dominance with her tongue, she ran her fingers down his chest slid them around to press his hips against hers. She lifted a leg to wrap around his waist, pulling him closer to close any gap. He groaned into his mouth on feeling the wonderful sensation of pressure against his heat.

Feebly, Orihime's hands wandered to his waist and then slid to the buckle of his belt. Her face began to heat up as she tried to loosen it from its clasp, but a rough hand immediately caught her wrists and pulled them away. Looking up, she could see an intense, green ember burning within his eyes. He shook his head in disapproval at her. She frowned, but complied nonetheless.

Ulquiorra's gaze softened as he lifted his hands to carefully remove her hairpins from her bangs. She watched him with awe and listened to his quiet breathing as he hovered above her. With the pins removed, he leaned forward against to capture her mouth in his. Orihime closed her eyes and shuddered visibly when she felt Ulquiorra's cool hands wander to the edge of her shirt again and then slip his pale hands under the fabric to caress her. Impatiently, Orihime reached for her shirt and began to pull it off over her head. Ulquiorra broke away from the kiss to watch her as she undressed herself.

Clad in only her bra and the shorts that fit snugly around her curves, Orihime flushed an even deeper red on feeling Ulquiorra's stare on her half-naked body. She pressed her palms onto his eyes to stop his speculating gaze.

"D-don't look at me like that!" she shut her eyes tightly in embarrassment.

It wasn't as if Ulquiorra felt totally apathetic about their current situation. He was also new to this. His face had also grown warm from the moment, but he imagined he was far beyond the point of being able to restrain himself.

Hungrily, he grabbed her wrists with one strong hand once more and held them high above her head against the bathroom wall. Closing his eyes, he leaned forward to suck on her neck.

"I won't open my eyes then, onna," he whispered against her warm skin.

Orihime only shut her eyes tighter in response, her hands clenching and unclenching in anticipation in Ulquiorra's grasp. With his other hand he reached behind Orihime for the clasp of her bra. His inexperience was as evident as daylight when he couldn't figure out how to undo the contraption. Giggling, Orihime freed her hands and reached behind her flexibly to remove her bra herself. Opening her eyes somewhat, she noticed Ulquiorra was gawking at her body with his bright, green eyes.

"I told you not to look!" She released her grip on her bra to cover his eyes again, but before she could cover herself, her bra had slid off, exposing her large breasts and pink nipples that bounced out as they were released.

Ulquiorra's eyes widened at seeing her nude body while Orihime's face turned tomato-red. Screaming with embarrassment she threw herself on Ulquiorra to press her naked body against his bare chest. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he had to grab her rear as she jumped and enveloped his waist with her legs. He stumbled back a few steps from the sudden force, but was able to regain his position. He walked over to the shower, sliding the door open with his foot.

Reaching for the shower knob with one hand since the other was still cradling Orihime, he pressed her back against the wall of the shower as steaming, warm water rained down on them. His nice slacks were becoming soaked, but it was the last thing on his mind at this point. Kissing her again, he pinned her against the wall more roughly, his hands supporting her weight on his hips. She moaned quietly against his lips as the water trickled down her cheeks and slipped into her mouth.

Their bodies started to heat up as they kissed. Orihime's hands slipped into his messy, raven-black hair, gripping it as she arched her body into his. Softly, he grinded his hips against hers, feeling the pressure of her round, soft breasts against him. Upon hearing her sweet moans, Ulquiorra's knees buckled underneath him and both bodies were sent colliding with the floor as the shower continued to soak their bodies. Now on top of her, he broke away from the kiss to nibble her bottom lip, his hands tugging at the elastic of her shorts. Orihime's eyes snapped open at his silent request and she reflexively brought her hands to clamp down on his wrists.

Ulquiorra opened his eyes to look into her silver pools, his wet hair dripping onto her flushed face. He was asking for permission.

"H-have you…?"

"No, Orihime," his eyes lessened in intensity, "I'm just as inexperienced as you are."

Orihime bit her bottom lip and nodded silently as water began to fill the tub and submerge her hair. Reluctantly, she loosened her hold on him and he warily slipped her shorts off without removing his gaze from her face. With half-lidded eyes, he brought both of his hands up to cup her breasts and squeeze them together gently eliciting a sharp gasp from her. She shut her eyes shyly as he gently kneaded her breasts together. Suddenly, she felt his mouth capture a nipple in his mouth and pleasure ran through her body as he flicked and rubbed his tongue against her hard nipple. She moaned louder as the sensation increased with his grinding movements against her naked pelvis.

Instinctively, she gripped his shoulders tightly as she felt his other hand roam down her curves and caress her inner thigh. She moaned loudly and arched her back on feeling him tickle the sensitive skin there. Ulquiorra slid his hand further up her thigh and applied pressure on her clit. She inhaled sharply and bucked her hips into his hands.

Her warmth was inviting and tempting him, but he had no idea if he would be harming her if he touched her. Ulquiorra lifted his head that was captured in her cleavage to look at her. Judging by her anxious expression, she was just as lost as he was.

"Ulquiorra," she moaned his name. She pulled her legs up to enclose his waist again and arched into him. He twitched as she felt her heat and wetness graze him. Their bodies were overheating in the steaming shower and their breathing was labored and lustful.

"I feel… so hot," she murmured. She was scalding under his touch.

He delicately picked her up, tucking a hand under her legs and the other to support her back, and shut off the shower. Orihime covered her large breasts with an arm shyly as they stared into each other's eyes, water dripping from strands of ebony and auburn hair. He stepped out of the shower and opened the door, not bothering to grab a towel to cover their wet and naked bodies.

After he managed to pry the door open with the girl in his arms, a cold current of air encompassed and tortured their overheated bodies. He began to carry her to her bedroom, but immediately halted in his step when they both heard someone, or something, shuffle around in the living room.

"Geez, I leave you guys for two weeks and you already can't keep your hands off each other!" Rangiku teased from the living room couch.

* * *

**Wow, Rangiku~ Way to ruin it!  
Please don't be shy to leave a review on your way out. Thank you!**


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